The Crazed Phantom
by GhostiesandGhoulies
Summary: It's a quiet Monday when Sozo Mikatake comes to SPR, begging the team to investigate her old victorian home. As their luck would have, the property has quite the dark past, full of tragedy and deception. Now they must rid of this crazed spirit before something bad befalls one of the team, especially Mai. But as things unfold, they begin to wonder if they can.
1. The Case

**Hello there! Here is my first Ghost Hunt story! I got the boxed set a couple of weeks ago and just fell in love all over again, anyway; enjoy! This is in Mai's POV, btw.**

**Ghost Hunt belongs to Fuyumi Ono, not me! I do own the Sozo, her daughter and all of the other characters not from the original cast.**

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I sighed in frustration. Overcast days were not for me; especially not Mondays. It didn't help that Naru seemed to be in a sour mood for some odd reason, maybe he wasn't immune to Monday's power of sourness after all. The sound of the door opening interrupted my thoughts.

A pale looking woman stepped in cautiously, looking around the room. She spotted me and huffed in relief.

I stood up, smile in place. "Hello there my name is Mai Taniyama, may I help you?"

She nodded and hesitantly approached me, "Yes my name is Sozo Mikatake... I have made an appointment for a consultation with Mr. Shibuya…"

The name was familiar, "Oh! Yes of course, take a seat here while I get him." With that I knocked on his door and opened the door enough so I could say "Naru, Ms. Mikatake is here." I saw him sigh and collect his notebook. Satisfied I headed to Lin's office and told him the same. Then I went into the kitchenette to make tea.

When I reentered Naru was just beginning the interview.

"Now Ms. Mikatake, why do you believe your home is haunted," he asked.

She immediately became fidgety, "Well perhaps first I should begin by saying recently I've hired a group of workers to refurbish the house because it is old and is in some places deteriorating."

I recalled Naru's warning to me that often times when someone tries to change a house from its original state that sometimes they become angry and disrupt the process as much as they can. Was that the case here?

Sozo continued, "But as the workers try to fix up the house, odd things are happening…"

This sparked Naru's interest, "What kind of things?"

"Well whatever work they've managed to do will be torn down the next day, tools will go missing, they hear moans and knocking sounds and sometimes their equipment comes flying at them." She paused, "Worst are the injuries they have sustained..."

"Injuries?" Naru questioned.

Sozo nodded once more, "Yes… Two are still in the hospital from their accidents. They received second degree burns from a fire that broke out in the area they were working. None of the original house was hurt but everything they had done was destroyed. Another is in a cast from a piece of wood that flew at him. Yet another is resting at home because of a sprained ankle."

I stared in disbelief, so many injuries…

Naru seemed to be thinking hard, "Is there anything else?"

To my surprise Sozo continued. I heard Lin's typing falter for a moment, apparently he was surprised too.

"Yes," she said, "My daughter has seen a shadow that moves through the house that she calls the 'Bad Man'. I asked her to draw me a picture of him and she gave me this…" Sozo pulled out a picture of a black blob in the shape of a man in a suit with glowing red eyes and a terrifying sneer on his face.

Naru studied the picture and then nodded to himself. "We'll take your case Ms. Mikatake. Please prepare 3 rooms for us, 2 for my team to stay in and one for our base. Also leave your contact information and address with Mai; expect us at around noon tomorrow."

I don't think I'd ever seen a client so relieved.

"Oh thank you Mr. Shibuya," she bowed deeply. Turning to me, she handed me an index card with her information.

I looked at it in shock, she had come prepared. Smiling to her I placed it on my desk and showed her out, "See you tomorrow then Ms. Mikatake."

She looked at me curiously and then laughed, "Please call me Sozo, Miss Taniyama."

I nodded and then laughed myself, "Then call me Mai."

We shared a laugh and then she left after patting my shoulder. I closed the door behind her and smiled softly, she reminded me a lot of my mother.

Sighing in content, I went to call the others. And so the case was on!

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**There it is! The first chapter done! Tell me what you think, no flames please...**


	2. First Encounters

**Hello**** again! Ghosties here. I only got one review on the last chapter but that was good enough for me. Here's the next chapter, much longer than the last, I know. Sorry but hope you like it!**

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_(Dream Sequence)_

_I was floating, or at least it felt like it. I opened my eyes and found myself looking right at Gene. I smiled, "Hey Gene! What are you showing me this time?"_

_He laughed and shook his head, "Mai I said this again and again I just guide you, I don't show you things." His eyes twinkled with amusement._

_I shrugged and looked around, our surroundings had changed already. I heard laughing and whipped around to see a man with a crazed look in his eyes. I backed up into Gene as I noticed the bloody bodies surrounding him. The man continued to laugh as the blood on his hands spilled down his arms. Horror filled me._

_He laughed manically, "Gone… gone… gone… GONE FOREVER!" He wiped the blood all over his face and began rolling in it._

_I felt sick and attempted to hold in a scream. The man kept chanting his little mantra and rolling in the blood. I closed my eyes trying to rid my mind of the image. I felt someone kneel beside me and place their hand on my head… Was that Gene?_

"_Momoru Izeru…" Gene murmured, "Remember that name."_

_With that he pushed me into consciousness…_

I woke up in a cold sweat… That man was definitely deranged. I shivered at the memory. Glancing at the clock and noted that I still had 3 hours until I had to be at SPR. Sighing I went for my shower, might as well get there early.

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I felt refreshed after my shower and decided I might as well get over to the office. My backpack was strung over my shoulder and my laptop bag in my arms. I couldn't help but wonder what Naru would think with my being early. I smiled at the thought of it. Maybe if I feel nice I can make him so tea. Maybe…

In no time I was at the office climbing the stairs. From the looks of it I was in fact the first to arrive at the office. I couldn't help my smirk of victory. I felt nice so I made tea for a certain narcissist and almost immediately after it finished, Naru and Lin walked in.

"Hey Naru, Lin," I called. If I didn't know any better I could have sworn Naru jumped. I neatly placed his tea on a tray and gave it to him.

He took it without hesitation and then looked at me strangely.

I blushed under his gaze and looked away, flustered. "What," I asked, "something on my face?"

Naru gave a small _smile_ and then shook his head, turning to his office.

Yeah a smile; I'd not seen one on him since the case at Ryokuryo High School. Gene on the other hand always gave me a smile at some point. _Stupid Naru... why can't you learn some things from your brother?_

Before long the others arrived and we were off. 45 minutes in a car with Naru and Lin passes quite slowly I realized. But before I could complain about it we were there.

It wasn't as big as I had thought but it was on the larger side. I am no specialist on houses but it looked to me like a Victorian style house. As soon as we stepped out a feeling of regret came over me, regret of what? I must've swayed because the next thing I know Takigawa is asking me what's wrong.

I gave into the look Naru gave me and told them of my feeling. Funny thing was that Masako hadn't picked it up. _Oh yeah! I'm getting better than Masako! _

"Tell me as soon as something happens next time," Naru quietly commanded.

I rolled my eyes and pushed forward to the porch, trying to ignore the feeling of their eyes on me. Knocking on the door, I began to observe the porch and the intricate carvings it housed. The front door opened and interrupted my observing.

"Oh hello Mai," a cheerful voice greeted, did I pick up some relief in there too?

I bowed to her and greeted back, "Hey Sozo!"

Sozo turned to the rest of the team and smiled, "I can thank you all enough for coming… Please come inside."

Let me tell you now, the inside is much more impressive, compared to the outside anyway. I stood in the doorway and admired the view of the inside while the others piled in and followed Sozo to a room. I caught up and froze in the entrance of the room. My eyes widened in realization. _This is where my dream was… this is where Momoru killed them…_

"Mai," someone called.

I shook my head to rid of the images and met eyes with Naru who was giving me a look. I shivered and slowly entered the room, my fear of the room subsided but I probably wouldn't be able to see this room without the blood stains everywhere.

Sozo took us to see the entire house and at one point Naru found his way to me.

"You had a dream about that first room…" It wasn't a question.

I merely nodded.

He sighed, "As soon as base is set up tell me about it."

I nodded again. As much as I didn't want to relive it I knew Naru would need the man's name and the dream also might even explain the case for all I knew. Naru would figure it out. Because, as he's told me before; Naru's brain works differently than mine.

As we finished the tour of the house Sozo clapped her hands and smiled, "Now that that is done, Mai you have to meet Moemi!"

I was so stunned at her outburst that I was dragged away by Sozo to this Moemi's room. While she was dragging me Sozo managed to explain to me that Moemi was the daughter she had told us about.

"So wait," I said, "Moemi is the one who sees the 'Bad Man'?"

'_Obviously Mai,' a voice said._

_Hey now Gene… Don't start sounding like Naru; I don't need two of him._

_He laughed, 'I can get that bad but you have nothing to worry about… at least for right now; besides you like how Naru acts.'_

_GENE!_

"-and then she just kept calling him the 'Bad Man' I guess it just stuck with her," Sozo finished.

_Oh crap! I didn't hear anything she just said! Thanks a lot chatterbox…_

'_Welcome!'_

"I'm sorry what did you say," I asked as politely as I could.

Sozo smirked, "I knew it! From the blank look on your face I could just tell you weren't hearing me!"

I looked down and scratched the back of my head, "Sorry about that… just thinking about some things…"

Her smirk turned into a smile, "Don't worry I have that sometimes too. Anyways what I was saying was that Moemi saw the shadow thing when we first moved into this place. She told me she heard him talking about how he was a bad child and that he should leave. I suppose she changed it to the 'Bad Man' and it just stuck."

I mulled it over, was it possible that Momoru was the 'Bad Man'? Did he regret what he did to his family? Another realization, was it his feeling that came over me when we first got here? It would make sense, maybe he felt bad about doing it whatever his reason was and maybe that was preventing him from moving on? _Ugh too many questions right now… Maybe when Yasu gets some research about things I can clear some of these questions up. Hey, Gene you listening to my crazy head?_

'_Already on it Mai, I'm not just a random spirit guide you know… I can find out things too,' his tone was teasing._

_I know. Yasu just gets in depth history and research in general._

'_Can't argue there,' he muttered._

"Come on, let's go in. I'm sure Moemi will love you," Sozo said.

I followed her in and all I saw was a blur leap into Sozo's waiting arms with a cry of "MOMMY!" I blinked and slowly turned my head to see who I assumed was Moemi giggling in her mother's arms.

Sozo laughed with her and then gestured to me, "Moemi, I'd like you to meet Mai Taniyama. She's here with the team who is going to get rid of the 'Bad Man'."

Moemi studied me for a moment and I couldn't help but feel flustered about it. She nodded to herself and gave me a big smile, "HI MAI-MAI!"

I too broke out into a smile, _she's soo cute!_ "Hi Moemi," I returned happily. She looked a lot like Sozo, same dark hair, similar smile and cheeks; except she had green eyes. Must have been from her father…

Sozo let her wiggling daughter down and crouched beside her, "Do you want to play with Mai for a little bit while I check on the rest of the team and get you some snacks?"

Moemi scrunched up her nose, thinking and then nodded to her mother and pulled on my hand toward the coloring books.

I cast a glance at Sozo, who gave me a wink and headed out. I rolled my eyes at her and followed Moemi. I looked at her pictures she had tacked up on the wall and smiled, "Do you like drawing Moemi?"

She followed my eyes to her pictures and then giggled, "Mmm-hmm! Mommy says it's good I draw because it lets me have freedom… Whatever that means; she likes when I draw too."

I laughed and handed her a crayon when she gestured for it. _Wonder how old she is, she's pretty good for being so young…_ I decided to ask, "So, Moemi, how old are you?"

Moemi thought a second and then beamed at me, "I'm 7!"

I found myself greatly surprised; she was great for her age!

It continued on like that for awhile, me asking her questions and getting excited answers until she stopped all of a sudden. I noticed her scared look and touched her shoulder, "Moemi?"

Her eyes trailed to the doorway and she whispered to me, "The Bad Man's back…"

My eyes shot to the doorway, I froze at what I saw. There, in the doorway was a black mass, very similar to the picture Moemi had drawn for us, with a scowl on its lips. I pulled Moemi behind me and tried to calm my nerves. "What do you want Momoru," I asked with a stronger voice than I thought I could pull off.

The mass turned its hate-filled red eyes to me and gave me a helpless look, "To exist…"

My eyes widened and I felt a cold shiver run down my spine. Just what had happened to him?

He began to stalk towards me and Moemi but I stood, frozen in fear. Then I heard something that made a wave of relief roll through me.

"MAI," a voice shouted from behind Momoru. "Nama kusa mada bazuradan-kan," Monk shouted.

I collapsed beside Moemi and gathered her into a hug as Momoru disappeared with a sharp cry.

Monk came over to us, "You two alright?"

I nodded and rubbed Moemi's back, "Thanks Monk…"

He patted my head and moved out of the way so Sozo could get Moemi.

I handed her off and stood up shakily, slowly making my way to Monk. He caught my arm when I reached him and looked me over.

"You sure you're ok Mai?"

I took a breath to steady myself and nodded, "Just shaken up a bit."

Naru walked in and surveyed the area, his eyes met mine for a moment and then he looked above me, "Takigawa what happened in here?"

Monk put his hand on my shoulder and said, "Well I sensed something and came up here to see Mai and the girl cornered by a shadowy mass. It doesn't appeared to have hurt either, just shook them up a bit." He paused, "Whatever it was didn't seem to want to leave, I am sure it'll return at some point."

Naru seemed thoughtful, "It is very odd that whatever is here is not reluctant to show itself."

"That's what I thought too," Monk agreed.

Naru sighed and looked at me, "Mai I want to hear about your dream now. We'll go to base so Lin can write it down." He paused before leaving, "Monk, please try and calm those two."

Monk gave a thumbs up as Naru left.

I merely followed Naru out, hearing Monk talking to Sozo and Moemi as we went down the hallway. When we reached the room, I again had a reluctance to enter. I felt like if I went in there, I'd be killed like Momoru's victims. I shoved these worries to the back of my head and went in, although cautiously.

Masako and John were out getting some things from the town so Ayako and Lin were the only two at base. Meaning, the base was abnormally quiet when Naru and I entered. I took a seat next to Ayako and studied the room while Naru spoke to Lin.

The room looked exactly as it did in my dream. Nothing had been changed since Momoru's killings.

'_Well duh Mai,' Gene said, 'Sozo told you guys that they were trying to refurbish but whatever spirits are here are not having it, remember?'_

_Yes, thank you Mr. Psychic._

'_Welcome, as always Mai,' he said with a smile._

"-ai, Mai," a voice called.

I jumped and met Naru's slight glare with a sheepish smile. "Yes," I asked sweetly.

His glare hardened slightly as he sat back in the chair across from me and Ayako. "I suppose I'll have to say it again then… Tell me your dream."

I blushed lightly and nodded. I told him everything that had happened, leaving out Gene's teasing. I watched Naru's thoughtful expression the whole time; it was the only thing that had kept me talking.

After a moment of quiet he asked me, "Where did you say this happened?"

I grew uncomfortable and looked around nervously, "In here…"

I saw the surprise on his face for only a second before it was gone.

"So that's why you were reluctant to enter earlier..."

Again I nodded.

Naru stood and went for his laptop and notebook, "I'll have Yasuhara research the property to see if he finds any kind of tragedies in the house… Mai, tea."

I sighed and headed to the kitchen. Some things never change. As I prepared the tea, I found myself wondering what Momoru had meant by wanting to exist. _Any thoughts, Gene?_

'_Not at the moment, it is an odd wish though isn't it?'_

_Definitely, it makes me wonder how his family treated him. Maybe they treated him like he was nonexistent?_

'_A good possibility…' Gene agreed, 'I'll try and find some things out, for now just keep a watch out… Never know what he might try. If you ask me he seems a bit unstable.'_

_Unstable?_

'_In other words on the verge of insanity; just be careful Mai,' Gene warned._

The screaming tea kettle woke me from my conversation with Gene. I grabbed some tea cups and a tray and poured out the tea. It was boring but part of my job unfortunately. As I finished up, the light in the kitchen turned off.

I gasped and looked around, trying to see in the darkness. "Hello," I called out shakily. Then I felt an ice cold hand brush my hair back behind my ear. "Wh-Who's there…" I tried. The hand continued its motions, stroking my hair, shivers worked through my body.

"Shh… it's okay Mokimo. It won't hurt that much…"

I froze.

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**Hey all, things are heating up quickly! Looks like this ghost is targetting Mai... (what a surprise) ;) R&R if you want, I'll update once I have another review on this chapter. I'm out!  
~Ghosties**


	3. Powerless

**Alright here is the next chapter. Sorry if it bores you, unfortunately its necessary. Meet you at the end!**

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I took shaky breaths, trying to console myself. _What on earth is Momoru talking about?_

"Do you fear me Mokimo…?"

_YES!_ I couldn't help but be afraid; I was alone with a possibly insane spirit that was treating me like some kind of precious stone! "I-I'm not M-Mokimo…" I managed to stutter out. I had no idea how he would react but I had to try. _Any bright ideas Gene?_

'_Not for you,' he said hurriedly, 'I'm trying to get Noll to see me and get to you… I'm trying Mai... I'm trying.' He was as worried as I felt._

Momoru breathed on my neck and made me shudder. _Try harder please…_

"What are you talking about Mokimo?" Momoru wasn't having it, "I know it's you…" His ice cold fingers touched my cheek.

I shut my eyes tight and tried to control my breathing. _Calm down Mai… just remember the warding magic Monk taught you… nice and easy…_ I put my hands in the form of the immovable one and began chanting. "Nama kusa mada bazuradan-kan, Nama kusa mada bazuradan-kan," I could feel myself gaining confidence. "Nama kusa mada bazuradan-kan," I said even louder.

I heard a hiss and felt a cold grip on my arms; Momoru was trying to pry my hands apart! I fought against him but felt my grip weakening. Another hiss, he was angry.

"Why are you trying to rid of me Mokimo?" he cried out. One of his hands left my arm; it was working!

I tightened my grip and continued chanting. I needed to do the nine cuts now while I still had the chance. _Gene…_

'_I know Mai, I know…' his voice was so worried. 'Come on, look at me… you… you IDIOT SCIENTIST!'_

I couldn't keep in my laugh at his antics, this interrupting my chant. I stopped and tried to refocus. _Come on Mai! Now is not the time for that! _The other hand left my arm so I chanced it and opened my eyes just in time to see Momoru back up and glare hard at me.

"WHY MOKIMO," Momoru roared, charging at me.

I lost my grip and put my hands out in front of me to try and block him, my back hitting the refrigerator. _Crap!_ Panic began to take over. I looked around wildly, hoping to find a way out. The door was my only option. I bounded towards it and felt a fiery pain in my cheek.

I cried out and clutched my burning cheek. _Gotta get out, gotta get out… now!_ I ran to the door and yanked on it to find it not budging. _Why is it always me?_ "COME ON DOOR," I yelled. I pulled harder but it had no effect, Momoru had blocked me in. Tears stung my eyes, _I have to get out!_ "Come on…" I begged it, "p-please…"

The icy hand was back in my hair, not nicely this time. It yanked on my hair and pulled me away from the door and into the air. I screamed. _It hurts so much! Gene where is he…?_

'_He's coming Mai!' He cried. 'Just hang in there… he's coming I swear!'_

I kicked and tried to pry the hands from my hair. "LET ME GO," I screamed.

I heard Momoru cackle manically, "As you wish Mokimo!"

He let go and I fell to the floor with a loud crack. There was a pain in my ankle, it hurt… so did my head. I crawled toward the door, trying to see past the black spots popping up in my line of vision. _Got to get out… Got to… g-ge-…_ My thoughts were getting clouded; the black was filling my vision.

Just then the door flew open and a furious looking Naru stepped in. He immediately came to me, cradling me against his chest.

My mind was hazy but I managed to stay awake, "Naru…?"

His gaze shot down to me, worry clear in his eyes, "Mai, just stay awake for me, alright?"

I could hear the anxiousness in those words; I nodded as best I could. I kept my eyes on his perfect face, barely registering Monk and John running past us to Momoru. Before I could stop it, my hand was reaching up to touch his cheek. "Naru…" I murmured, "..you're worried…" For some reason it amazed me.

He gave me an incredulous look, "Idiot; of course I'm worried…" He smirked lightly, "You must have hit you head harder than I thought..."

The darkness started creeping in my vision again, "S-Sorry Naru. I'm gonn-…" I could say nothing more as darkness overwhelmed me. In the haze of my last moments conscious I thought I heart Naru cry out my name, must've been my imagination though. I do imagine a lot of weird things after all…

_(Dream Sequence)_

_When I opened my eyes again, Gene was giving me a disappointed look with his arms crossed; I returned with an apologetic look. _

"_Leave it to you to be the target of this ghost…" he muttered. He ran a hand through his hair and sat down by me. "Guess it's just your luck huh," he said with a small smile._

_I gave a faked hurt expression, "What? It's not my fault I'm a ghost magnet.."_

_Gene shook his head slightly and stood, pulling me with him. "Well," he said with a sigh, "we have stuff to see, I managed to dig up some memories of the land and I thi-"_

"_Wait," I cut in, "you can see memories of the land…?"_

_He shook his finger at me, "Now Mai, do you honestly doubt my abilities?"_

_I looked down and gave a shrug, "Just wondering."_

_Gene patted my head, "Oh you.. But yes. Everything has memories, including inanimate objects. They house images of what has happened to them and I have the ability to see those. It's kind of hard to explain but there it is."_

_I followed him as he began walking, "Leave it to the Davis twins to have weird abilities…"_

_He laughed._

_It was then I realized our surroundings had changed; we were on the property, looking at the outside of the house. I gave Gene a look. "Why are we wat-"_

_He put his finger on my lips and quieted me, "Just wait."_

_I did. The house began to fade away until the foundation of the house was left. I could only look on in amazement as the foundation built itself into a beautiful shrine. I felt myself let out a breath, it certainly was an impressive little shrine._

_I noticed a woman standing on the steps of the little shrine, looking proud and yet worn somehow._

"_That's the shrine maiden that lived here, Tatsu Omori," Gene commented._

"_She lived there?"_

_He nodded as we approached, "Yes, it is unusual to live in a shrine but it wasn't too uncommon back then."_

_As we kept watching, the shrine fell into ruin. I felt a pang of sadness in my heart. All traces of the old shrine vanished when the house faded back in. Then the image faded altogether and we were in my dreamscape again._

"_Tatsu is buried beneath the shrine… I can't help but wonder if she is still around as well as Momoru."_

_I took it into consideration, it was quite possible._

"_Ah, we better get you back now," Gene said quietly. "Noll is worried sick about you."_

_I snorted, "Yeah right, that stupid Naru could care less about me."_

_Gene shot me a disapproving look, "Now Mai… he has his own way of showing he cares you just might have to look at the true meaning of what he does. Just think of what he said to you before you passed out."_

_I looked at him curiously before trying to remember and then Naru's words rang clear in my head._

_Idiot; of course I'm worried._

_My eyes widened a fraction as I realized. I looked up at Gene to see a soft smile on his lips._

"_See?"_

_The world of the living began pulling on my dreamscape and I fell into the real world._

_**-LineBreak-LineBreak-LineBreak-**_

I groaned as my eyes opened to the land of the living. Looking around, I tried to pinpoint just where I was. I sat up to get a better view of the room. Then it hit me, we had passed this room briefly on the tour Sozo had given, this was her room.

I swung my legs over the edge of the bed and heaved myself to my feet. Big mistake. Immediately the room swayed and the next thing I knew I was on the floor, dazed and hurting. I gingerly touched my aching head and sat up.

'_Hey genius,' Gene called, 'am I the only one who remembers that you got beat up by a ghost last night?'_

I could hear the sarcasm in that question. _Quiet you…_ I looked around and shook my head to try and rid of the dizziness but that just made it worse. I groaned in annoyance and lowered my forehead to the floor, enjoying the cooling feeling it brought. _Ok… let's try this again._

Gaining my bearings I rose to my feet again. I stood completely still for a moment while the room stopped spinning. It was then I noticed the pain in my ankle. I looked down and finally took note of the medical wrap around it. "Just my luck…" I muttered. _Well… how bad can it be? I just need to get to base is all…_

Bracing myself I tried my injured ankle and put weight on it. I yelped as a shot of pain shot up my entire leg. And me having the luck I have, I managed to lose my balance and fall backwards onto the bed. "I GIVE UP!" I shouted at the ceiling.

Having fallen twice, I just decided to wait until someone came to check on me. _Might as well… I can't get anywhere on my own._ Oh how sour my mood was getting…

The wrath of my sour mood would be felt by all.

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**My oh my how boring the ending was! Sorry again but like I said it's necessary. Thanks for reading! See ya next chapter!**

**~Ghosties**


	4. Sourness and Injury

**Hello there! Sorry this took me a bit, I couldn't get it to upload for the longest time. Anyways, this is kind of a boring chapter, fair warning. See you guys at the end!**

**Ghost Hunt belongs to Fuyumi Ono.**

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I glowered at the door, daring someone to enter. I sat with my arms crossed; one leg crossed the other stretched out in front of me. My head was pounding by now and the room was completely blurred in my peripherals. This didn't faze me in the slightest; in fact it just made my mood worse. I grinned evilly, thinking of who might be the first to enter.

Finally after what seemed like a lifetime, the door opened slightly and Monk's head peered in. When he saw me his eyes widened and a smile broke out on his face, "Hey you're up!"

His happy mood dampened my sourness only slightly, "Well of course I am. I've been up for nearly two hours." The voice I managed made me smirk, oh yeah I sounded pure evil.

He quirked a brow at me, clearly wondering what was with me, "What's the matter Mai? Head hurting?"

I glared, obviously Monk.

"Aww, you're so cute when you're angry Mai!" He exclaimed, bringing me into a hug.

I didn't return it. Instead I tried to push him off, a low growl coming out. "GET OFF MONK," I screeched.

I think surprise made him let go of me, he leaned back and looked hard at me. His brown eyes studied me for a moment before he smiled, "I'll send Ayako with some pain killers, okay?"

"I don't care…" I muttered.

He laughed and ruffled my hair, making my head hurt worse.

I sent him a glare and he made his way to the door, "Yes, please leave."

Monk looked at me one more time and laughed, "Whatever you say growly bear!" With that he left.

My mood quickly became purely sour again, growly bear? "WHO YOU CALLING A GROWLY BEAR," I screamed, probably catching someone's attention. _I hope I did._

Ayako came up soon enough after that, carrying a glass of water and two small pills, "Here, get out of your sourness."

I gave her a mildly surprised look.

"Oh Monk told us _all_ about how his favorite person was being kind of a grizzly bear at the moment don't worry," she said with a small smirk.

I internally groaned, but simply scowled externally.

"Alright besides being grumpy how are you? Any soreness or burning?" She was going into doctor mode now.

I shrugged before temporarily giving up my sourness; temporarily. I gave her a sheepish look, "Well when I first woke up I tried to stand twice and fell both times, the first time on the ground the second on the bed."

She shot me a disappointed look, "Oh Mai… you're probably just making things worse." Having said that, she began unwrapping the bandage on my ankle.

I hated to admit it but it did look swollen when it hadn't before. I lowered myself to the bed, trying to be as small as possible.

When she had it fully unwrapped, she prodded and poked a few times; doctor face in place. Sitting back and rubbing her chin thoughtfully, Ayako gave me a chancing look. "Honestly," she said, "it looks to me like you someone knocked it out of place. I'm going to have to set it and it's going to hurt."

I shied away at the thought of pain, "How much time of pain?"

Ayako gave me a curious look before tilting her head back and forth, "It depends but probably 30 seconds to a minute."

I gulped; any time of pain was too much.

She smiled at me softly, like a mother would, "Do you want me to get someone so you can hold their hand?"

I nodded.

But as Ayako went to get up, the door opened and in walked none other than Naru. We both sat looking at him as he leaned against the wall and crossed his arms.

"How is she Ms. Matsuzaki?"

I'm right here you know Naru, I thought bitterly.

Giving a sigh, Ayako told him everything she had discovered and how she was about to set my ankle. "I was just going to get someone to hold her hand while I set it when you walked in," she finished.

Naru seemed to be in thought so we waited for him to speak.

"There'll be no need, I'll do it just set it Ms. Matsuzaki," he said definitively.

I shared a shocked look with Ayako and then she shrugged, "Alright then, let's get this over with."

_WHAT?_ I screeched in my head.

'_OI,' Gene called, 'Some of us do try and sleep when given the chance!'_

_Sorry…_ I quickly apologized as Naru approached the bed, going around to the other side.

'_What are you panicking for? You get to hold hands with Naru, it's what you've wanted since day one!' He pointed out sleepily._

I blushed as Naru sat on the bed, pulling himself onto the bed, back against the headboard, _THAT'S NOT THE POINT!_

_Gene laughed._

Naru offered his hands to me and I gently took them, probably as red as a tomato. "Look at me," he murmured, noticing that my attention was wandering to my ankle.

My eyes snapped to him, my breathing picking up; I didn't like pain whatsoever. But as I looked at him, I began realizing I was seeing mild worry and yet amusement in his dark eyes. Then to my amazement a very small but comforting smile worked onto his face. I managed a small smile of my own to trade. It was calming to be looking at him, my breathing had almost returned to normal when an unbearable pain came from my ankle.

I cried out and snapped my eyes shut, squeezing Naru's hands tight. It hurt worse than when I had stood on it! That was all I felt for a long minute and then it slowly began to ebb away. It was then I realized one, I was crying and two, Naru was talking to me.

"Shh, it's alright now, it's over Mai…" he was saying gently.

It was also at this point that I realized I was clutching onto his abdomen, his hands rubbing my back.

'_Aww,' Gene exclaimed, 'it's a Kodak moment!' Then he smirked, 'You'll be hugging him a lot when you're married though…'_

I blushed harder if at all possible and shot back from him like I had been burned. I attempted to keep what dignity I had left in place as I turned away from him. "Thanks," I said curtly, "you can go now; I don't need you at the moment."

He hesitated but rose and walked toward the door, he looked back only once and in that glance I saw that his eyes were full of… hurt. Naru shook his head and slammed the door shut on the way out.

I flinched and then looked down guiltily. I did feel a little bad for that one.

'_And as well you should,' Gene said, disappointment in his tone, 'you hurt him doing that one.'_

I couldn't help myself as tears flooded my vision; I hated it whenever I did something that hurt others. Mother had taught me how deeply it can hurt and I always tried not to, not always succeeding.

I don't know how long I cried, or how long Ayako had been gone but it had to have been awhile. I didn't even know why I cried, was it guilt? Or was it something else?

Anyway I finally got myself up and dressed and decided I should head to base to check up on things, I had been away from everything more than long enough. My progress was slow however, my injured ankle making me limp heavily, even though Ayako had set it.

The pain was enough to stop me once I had gotten halfway down the stairs. I hated myself for being so weak. Suddenly the look Naru had given me before flashed in my mind and I immediately stood up and continued, despite the pain.

When I was maybe five steps from the bottom I felt an icy breath on the back of my neck. I stopped and stood there, knowing if I turned around I would see Momoru. "What do you want," I asked as evenly as I could.

I heard a throaty chuckle, "Please Mokimo… you must know by now."

_What is he talking about?_ As I was racking my brain for some kind of answer I felt a hand push me forward, I was falling before I knew it. As I flew through the air, I managed to get myself leveled and I landed on my foot… with the bad ankle. I winced as I landed fully, ending up on my knees. It was then my mind processed everything and I realized Momoru had said something as I had been falling.

"_Dearest Mokimo… I only wish for your death."_

I shuddered and glanced at the empty stair well, no one. I groaned and held my ankle, just my luck to have the ghost confuse me with someone else and try to kill me… Using the hand rail, I pulled myself to my feet, ankle aching terribly. _I don't care_, I decided, _I can't let this keep me down._

I slowly made my way to the base room, dragging my injured leg behind, not even wanting to lift it. I clenched my teeth as I got off the wall I had been using and had to walk on the leg. Every step was agony. Finally I got to the closed door and allowed myself a small smirk of victory.

Opening the door I forced myself to walk normally, with a little limp, into the room. Good thing I did too, everyone's eyes turned to me. I stopped and gave a small wave, nervous smile in place.

Everyone returned the gesture, with the exception of Lin and Naru, who was giving me a hurtful glare. _Yep, I screwed that up._

'_You can say that again…' Gene muttered._

I sighed and made my way over to the couch, "So what's going on guys?" I sat down heavier than I intended which made me wince. No doubt Ayako noticed.

Monk was the one who answered, "Right now we're waiting for Yasu to get here and share the info he gathered."

I nodded, so they were playing the waiting game, "Hope you don't mind my joining?"

They all shook their heads, smiles on their faces.

Monk hugged me, crying fake tears, "I'm so glad you're not a grizzly bear anymore Mai!"

My mood dropped, and I glowered at him, "That can quickly be changed Monk…" Oh yes, I was feeling the need to be sour again, especially with his idiocy around.

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**You made it! I'm amazed, this chapter was utterly boring. Sorry I didn't get as much sourness in as I wanted. I promise you more sour in the future. Thanks for reading!**

**~Ghosties**


	5. The History

**Hey there, since there's a Blackout on Fanfiction tomorrow, I decided to whip up a chapter so you guys have two to read when the blackout if over. The blackout is in protest of the Fanfiction staff for removing stories with graphic violence or adult themes, basically some of my favorites so I'm taking part. Anyway, here you are!**

**Ghost Hunt belongs to Fuyumi Ono.**

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A little while after I had arrived, our group around the table started up a game of cards while we waited for Yasu to arrive. So far, it was Monk and John in the lead, Ayako being last. I gave up when I knew it was getting down to John vs. Monk.

When the final round was about to begin, Yasu walked in. We all greeted him and then saw the stack of information he had.

"Dang Yasu, you overdo it sometimes," Monk exclaimed, helping him to set the massive stack down.

He let out a breath of relief and then smiled, "It's not like I can help it, this land has a long and complicated history."

I perked up at that, _think it includes what we've seen Gene?_

'_Duh,' he said with a small smile, still a little upset with me for hurting Naru. 'Why else would I have guided you to see it if it weren't important?'_

_Good point._ When I began paying attention to my surroundings again, I noticed Yasu was getting ready to share his information.

"Well," he began, "this place had a lot of intense history, and I managed to find quite a lot of sources on what happened too from a journal to a newspaper article and even some police records. With that let me start." He pulled out a small clump of papers and cleared his throat. "Approximately 200 years ago," he said, "this land was the site of a shrine and it was quite the pretty little thing. A special priestess was assigned to oversee the place and take care of it, her name was Tatsu Omori. Apparently she loved the shrine to death, as she always kept it in tip top condition and even made sure certain procedures were taken to ensure it would stay that way."

I immediately thought back to my dream, having seen the happy woman sitting out on the porch of the shrine, enjoying her time.

"Then, after 40 years of living in the shrine and caring for it, Tatsu passed away and left behind a will saying that she only wished for two things. One to be buried beneath her beloved shrine and two to make sure someone took care of it and kept it perfect as she had. Unfortunately only one of her requests was granted, she was buried beneath the shrine but no one stepped up to the plate to take care of the place and it slowly fell into ruin."

I could see it all happening from the dream, I knew what came next; the Izeru family.

Yasu put that stack of paper down and grabbed a much larger one, "Anyway ten years passed and the Izeru family came along. At first they wanted to try and restore the small shrine and build a house beside it but it had been unkempt for so long and it was better off to be taken down. So instead, Mr. and Mrs. Izeru decided to have the basement foundation of their house be built from the old shrine's foundation. This wish was fulfilled by the construction company." He paused to flip through some pages, "Something I found interesting, though, was that Mr. and Mrs. Izeru had a son named Momoru who was rather adamant about having the shrine destroyed altogether when they asked him why he told them he was an atheist."

Momoru, the name itself sent a shudder down my spine. Before I could stop myself I began glancing around the room nervously, remembering the bloody walls. If someone saw me do this, they did not say anything.

"The house that we're in now was built and the Izeru's moved in. The family then consisted of Mr. Izeru whose name was Daiichi, Mrs. Izeru who was names Masani and their son Momoru. Time passed and Mrs. Izeru gave birth to a daughter who they named Mokimo Izeru."

Mokimo! So that's who Momoru is confusing me with, his little sister.

Yasu flipped through more pages, "Alright now years passed and Momoru went to a college out in Hokkaido somewhere. After graduating he returned home and resumed living here. It was at this point Mr. and Mrs. Izeru noticed the changes their son had gone through. No longer was he a happy and studious teen, now he was a man who became obsessed with the occult and paranormal. Frightened of these drastic changes, they called in a doctor. At this point, the Izeru's neighbors, the Amarakai's get involved. The Amarakais' consisted of an older woman named Inoishi and her beautiful daughter Koitsu."

Koitsu; for some reason I felt that I knew the name.

"Now Inoishi quite frankly hated her neighbors and believed they were all strange in the head. Koitsu on the other hand held the family in high regards and actually kind of liked Momoru. She had no idea how he had changed at this point however." Yasu pulled out a separate file, "The doctor that was called in ended up spending the day with Momoru. At the end of that day he came to Daiichi and Masani and told them that he saw the beginnings of insanity in Momoru and that he needed to be put in an insane asylum. He also warned that if not given help, Momoru would eventually become deranged. The doctor's actual notes read: 'Subject is on the brink of insanity, asylum strongly recommended. Obsession of occult is possible case'." Yasu closed this file and picked up the stack he had previously, "The parents were horrified at the thought of doing such a thing and sent the doctor away, seeking another opinion. Momoru meanwhile was angered at his parents for thinking he needed to be seen by a doctor, his belief being that they agreed to what the doctor had told them."

I reflected on this while Yasu got out another packet, so Momoru thought that his parents were going to put him in an insane asylum and got angry. _Did this lead to him killing them?_

'_It might have,' Gene said, 'his thoughts were confused and fueled by anger, he might have struck out against them. We'll just have to wait and see.'_

Yasu picked up again, "Alright, now since the first doctor had been such a disappointment for them, Daiichi and Masani sent for a second doctor to come, seeking a second opinion. The second doctor was only with Momoru for half an hour before he expressed his deep concerns for the man's sanity, saying they needed to put him in an insane asylum or all hope for him was gone. The couple quickly sent him away, not caring to hear anymore from him. It was at this time that Koitsu decided it was her duty to try and relieve some of the stress from the family. This was much to the grievance of her mother since old Inoishi decided the family was insane. Koitsu ignored her mother's warnings and spent 3 days with the family, one day with now 8th grader Mokimo, one day with Masani and Daiichi and one day with Momoru. During her day with Momoru she noted his attraction to her but she was worried for him and refrained from telling him of her feelings for him. After her stay, Koitsu's mother ordered her to stay at home. She didn't wish to but did what she could to watch over the family."

Things were getting heated at home and Momoru had been referred to an asylum twice now, his mind was probably very unstable at that point, I summarized to myself. When is your breaking point Momoru?

Yasu cleared his throat and began looking a little uncomfortable, "It's during the last doctor visit when things go wrong for this family." Getting a breath he began slowly, "The third and final doctor stayed for only ten minutes and then ran to Daiichi and Masani telling them that the only thing they could do for Momoru would be to kill him, for the safety of everyone. Momoru heard every word of this except for the denial from his parents. Full of rage and hurt he began trying to convince himself it wasn't true, that he wasn't crazy. He finally did at some point and at this time was convinced that everyone was against him except Koitsu, his affection for her probably being the cause of that. He mentally decided that the only way to ensure his safety was to kill all of the people against him."

_It was then_, I thought, _that's when he broke and became truly insane._

'_I almost don't want to hear the rest,' Gene said._

_I hear you there_, I agreed.

Yasu pulled out one last, very large file, full of papers, "The last part of this story is gonna be graphic… because of what Momoru ends up doing."

I froze and remembered the first dream I had had, Momoru rolling in blood and chanting his little song. I already know what happens but I need to hear it confirmed.

He cleared his throat again and let out a long sigh, "Okay, well the next day, after Mokimo had gone to school, Momoru ventured into his parent's study and mortally wounded them, but not killing them yet. When Mokimo came home, she was probably captured by her brother and thrown into the room alongside her parents. This was when Momoru slaughtered them, their causes of death varying from blood loss to internal trauma. Not satisfied with just killing them, Momoru rolled in their blood and treated it as war paint. He also wasn't satisfied with just killing his family and when the Amarakai's came over to check on the family, they too were locked in the room. Inoishi died instantly from a slit throat but Koitsu was spared for a time. Her horror overtook her however and she made the mistake of telling Momoru he needed help. In a moment of blind rage, he struck out and wounded Koitsu. As she lay dying she told the man of her feelings and apologized. Momoru, upon realizing what he had done, killed himself as well." Yasu paused and collected himself, "Police reports say that they found them all in the study, blood on the walls and floorboards. They found Momoru fallen beside Koitsu, a bloody kiss mark on her cheek and a cold arm protectively laying over her. His final words written on the wall in blood, 'I'm sorry… I only wanted to keep existing…'. He had slit his wrists and plunged a knife into his heart."

Yasu put down all of the files and sat back, arms crossed, "Many families have tried to fix up the house but have all had the same problem as Sozo has. All ended up moving out. Also a lot of the families left claims of having a blood smell in the study and usual reports of ghostly activity."

I felt my nervousness return times two, knowing the very room we were in was the study where Momoru had killed the family. Then something occurred to me, I smelled blood. Looking up, I froze completely. Blood littered the walls and floorboards, Momoru's message stood out on the wall opposite of me. My eyes widened and I screamed, curling up on the couch, unable to look away.

There was a flurry of activity around me but I wasn't seeing it, only the blood. Then my vision was blocked by dark blue eyes and a frowning face.

"Mai, get a hold of yourself," Naru scolded, "What's wrong?"

I merely pointed my hand to the wall and said, "B-Blood…"

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**Thanks for reading! Don't get on fanfiction tomorrow if you're protesting! See ya the day after tomorrow!**

**~Ghosties**


	6. Forgiveness

**Hey all! Sorry this took awhile. The power has been going out around here like crazy and I had to keep restarting, sorry again! Hope you enjoy!**

**Ghost Hunt belongs to Fuyumi Ono.**

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The others followed my pointed hand to the wall and then looked back at me.

Naru met my eyes, "Mai there is nothing there."

My eyes widened more and I looked back at the wall and shook my head, "No... no, no it's there! I can see it!" I was getting frantic, the smell of iron giving me a headache. I held my head and tried to breathe in and out but everything just smelled of blood. Then I heard screams of pain and disgusting squishing sounds and I huddled into myself, "Make it stop…" I begged them, "Please make it s-stop…" It was then I heard Gene.

'_Mai calm down,' he called, trying to help me, 'it's not there, Momoru is making you hear and smell the things he did! Tell them, they can make it go away, just calm down Mai.'_

His voice was comforting amidst all of the sounds and screams. I nodded and managed to get out, "Momoru… he's d-doing this… make him stop, please!" Then I curled up closer to myself, hands on my ears. _Stop it, stop!_ I was freaking out; the sounds could make anyone feel crazy. Then I realized, Momoru was trying to do that!

My throat was constricting, my panic overwhelming my senses. I felt like I couldn't breathe! My breath came in short gasps, _what is going on!_ Darkness was reaching in from the sides of my vision. _Calm down Mai_, I told myself, _deep breaths_. It was working, my breathing was calming and so was my frantic mind. It was then I began to take note of my surroundings.

There was a hand on either of my cheeks and my forehead was against something. I opened my eyes slowly; half expecting to see blood but instead I was met with deep blue eyes, gazing at me. As I kept looking I noticed the worry and was that guilt? "Naru…" I breathed. Our foreheads were together I realized.

He let out a small sigh of relief, "You had me worried there…"

I had worried him? Now I felt twice as guilty, "I'm sorry Naru… for earlier and for making you worry." I hadn't meant to hurt him, but I did and it felt terrible to have that over my head. The guilt made tears come to my eyes, "I'm sorry I never listen… I-I'm sorry I always disappoint you… I'm sorry for e-everything!" I broke then, and began sobbing in guilt. It was confusing, I didn't have a handle on my emotions at this place; they were out of control.

Naru pulled away from me and held my smaller hands in his. He kept his eyes on our hands, rubbing his thumbs back and forth. "It's alright Mai," he said quietly, "I apologize as well… I acted irrationally earlier and I must have hurt your feelings…"

I shook my head as he was talking and leaned into his shoulder, tears falling from my cheeks. "It's my fault in the first place…" I muttered.

He wiped my cheeks and gave me a soft smile, "You sure are an emotional roller coaster, aren't you?"

I pushed away the part of me that wanted to snap back at him and instead told him what I had noticed, "Ever since we got here I have just had to reign on my emotions… it's ridiculous."

This caught his attention, "Ever since we arrived here?"

I nodded and brushed away more tears, sniffling. "I usually have good control of my emotions but ever since we've been here I just… I can't control them," I continued. It was at that point I looked around, "Where is everybody?"

Naru gave me an incredulous look, amusement dancing in his eyes, "Mai they left us be about an hour ago."

I honestly hadn't noticed. I said nothing but rather continued enjoying Naru's protective and strong aura… Wait aura? Since when could I sense auras? Another string of confusion worked through me. Shrugging it away mentally I took a deep breath and lifted my head from Naru's shoulder. "Thanks," I said gratefully. I felt perfectly at ease which was weird because usually I was a blushing idiot around Naru but at that moment it was if it was perfectly normal.

Naru studied me carefully, obviously wondering if I was going to have another emotional outbreak.

I met his eyes momentarily before looking away, a blush finally coming to my cheeks. "I feel like an idiot," I admitted.

His eyes flashed with an unreadable emotion and then he gave a shake of his head.

For a second I almost thought I saw Lin or someone standing behind Naru, looking at us. I looked to greet them but there was nothing. There had to have been someone there! "Naru…" I started, keeping my eye on the mass that was slowly forming, "I don't think we're alone…"

Naru's blue eyes darted to me and then he whipped around. I knew he saw it too. His hand grabbed mine, an automatic reaction of his by now.

I squeezed the offered hand and kept my eyes on the form that was now morphing into a human figure. "Momoru…" I whispered.

"He certainly seems to have taking a liking to you," Naru whispered back to me.

That was not something I took pride in either. "It's not my fault I'm ghost bait…" I muttered quietly.

Our conversation paused as Momoru's form became complete. His eyes opened and a sneer appeared on his face. He didn't stalk forward like I thought he would but rather he went to the wall he had written his message on and put his hand on it. "Foolish people," he growled, "they believed me crazy so I made them dead."

I could only listen to his sharp voice in silence, nothing good ever happened when Momoru appeared. What would it be this time? I feared the answer.

His hateful red eyes turned to us. "You believe me crazy too," he spat, "you must DIE!"

Before I could register anything, the door slammed shut. Naru and I leaped up and went to the door, trying to get away from Momoru's now approaching form.

I pulled on the door desperately, it was locked.

Naru pulled with me on the door for a moment before whipping around and bringing me into his arms. He wrapped his arms around me protectively and held me towards the door, putting himself between me and Momoru.

Momoru stopped and glared, "Release Mokimo, I must kill her!"

Naru's own glare shot back at the phantom before us, "You're not laying a hand on her." His voice was deadly, daring the man to try it.

I felt helpless, I couldn't do anything that would work against Momoru, and neither could Naru! I froze as Momoru smiled devilishly and continued forward. Then he readied himself and leapt at Naru.

_Please_, I begged, _please someone help!_

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**There we are, another chapter down! Hope you enjoyed. For fans of 'You Have Stolen My Heart': Chapter 3 will be arriving soon! See you next time!**

**~Ghosties**


	7. Discoveries

**Hello again! Here is the next chapter, I got it written faster since the power outages have stopped, as have the storms. Anyway, hope you enjoy!**

**Ghost Hunt belongs to Fuyumi Ono.**

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Everything was happening in slow mo, Momoru continued his charge forward, a wicked smile upon his lips. I was braced for impact while Naru was tensed for the attack, ready to fight back. I could only pray he wouldn't try to use his powers.

Momoru swung and knocked Naru away from me. I watched in horror as Naru slammed into a bookshelf and slid down to the floor, unconscious in seconds.

I backed up into the door, terror racing through me. Momoru's red eyes held nothing but bloodlust and hate and it was aimed at me. _He's going to kill me_, I realized.

The phantom reared back his hand and got ready to swing.

I shut my eyes, my heart was racing._ I don't want to die… I don't want to die! Someone help!_

Then just as I heard Momoru about to swing there was a loud cry that echoed in the small room.

"MOMORU STOP!"

I opened my eyes to see Momoru frozen in his motion, recognition in his eyes. Looking beyond him I saw another apparition, but this one was gray and like a smoke in the room. I could clearly see the features of this person though.

Her long hair and dark eyes, full of fear gave her away to me. It was Koitsu.

Momoru turned toward her, momentarily forgetting me.

I used his distraction to work over to Naru's unconscious form. I carefully looked him over for any sign of injury but found nothing, he must have just hit his head. I quickly elevated his head and cradled it in my arms, his head on my shoulder. Feeling confident he would be alright in my arms, I brought my attention back to the confrontation in front of me.

"Koitsu…" Momoru breathed; disbelief and hurt in his tone. He glowered at her, "Why did you stop me? Mokimo is against us."

I recalled Yasu telling us how Momoru had believed everyone was against him except his love interest, Koitsu. _So he really thinks I'm Mokimo then_.

The woman shook her head, a sorrowful look on her face. "Momoru I won't allow you to hurt more innocents, especially when you are mistaking a person for someone else," she cried.

She was trying to help me, I finally realized. Did she hear my pleas?

Momoru's form darkened, he was angry. "What are you saying? I could never mistake another for Mokimo; I know what she looks like!"

I subconsciously tightened my hold on Naru, fear of what may happen becoming prominent in my mind.

In a flash Koitsu was in front of Momoru, "Your time is up."

It struck me as odd, what on earth did that mean?

As if on cue, Momoru's form began dissappaiting. He growled and began vanishing saying, "I'll be back…" It was a promise.

I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding and relaxed slightly. Looking up I noticed Koitsu's gaze upon me.

"Are you alright Mai?" Her voice was kind and calm.

I couldn't help but be shocked to say the least, "You know my name…"

She gave a small look of surprise and then smiled kindly at me, "Yes, I suppose that must come as a shock to you hmm?" Koitsu settled on the floor and watched me, "I have been looking over Sozo and Moemi since they arrived here, and I couldn't help but catch your name when you were introduced to Moemi."

That made sense; Sozo had told Moemi my name at our introductions. I returned a small smile, "It did send me for a loop but I think it's not as important as being safe right now, thank you for that."

She offered a nod and sighed, "Momoru is getting more dangerous, I don't know why he has changed."

I met her concerned gaze and waited for her to continue.

Koitsu looked down, as if shamed, "Before when other families would try to move in and change the house, Momoru would just displace their tools and gently take down what they had done. Then as time went on he began getting more violent. He began attacking the workers and destroying everything they tried to do." She gave me a helpless look, "Then when you and your team arrived he just became overcome with rage. He wants to kill you Mai… he truly believes you _are _Mokimo."

The tone of her voice told me that she was scared for me. "What about the real Mokimo," I questioned, "where is she?"

Koitsu's face softened and a small yet worn smile appeared on her face, "Little Mokimo's spirit passed on long ago… She was the only one who escaped Momoru's control. It was probably because she always had a soft spot in her older brother's heart."

I felt like Yasu or Lin, collecting evidence, "What do you mean by control?"

Her face darkened, "Momoru is a very powerful man, but the power is not his own. He has trapped us here. Unless he moves on, the rest of our spirits cannot move on either. Mokimo escaped that control because Momoru loved her so dearly."

"But he killed her! Why kill the person that you hold dear to you?" The questions in my mind seemed to never end, "And what did you mean the power is not his own."

Koitsu stayed silent a moment before answering, "Mokimo was precious to Momoru and even when he killed her he had a guilty conscious, hating himself for even thinking of killing her. He was merciful in that he killed her quickly, not allowing her to feel pain for more than an instant. The day he struck out however, he was taken over by something…" She paused and tried to calm herself; it was obviously an unpleasant memory, "When he struck down my mother, there was a shadow hovering just over him, I didn't get a close look at it but I know I saw glowing red eyes and its face was twisted in a sneer. The look in his eyes was not his own either, they were full of bloodlust and yet horror. I know that the horror was him, not believing what was happening."

I connected the dots quickly, "He was possessed…"

She nodded, "Yes, I believe that too. His obsession with the occult also was not his own doing. When I came to the family so long ago, my day spent with him raised questions in my own mind. Something that was pointed out to me rather prominently, Momoru had always been afraid of the paranormal things in this world before but he was obsessed now. It didn't make sense." Koitsu then fell silent, allowing me to think things over.

_So she thinks he was possessed by something_, I pondered.

'_Something definitely evil by that stand point,' Gene added._

I had to agree, if the occult obsession had come with the bloodlust and hatred, then it definitely led obvious hints towards evil. And then there was the prospect of him being only slightly aware of what was happening; what he was doing.

'_So whatever possessed him had absolute control over his mind and body and towards the end that control began to break up slightly,' Gene theorized, 'it was probably then that Momoru gained enough control to end his life, ashamed of what had happened.'_

I nodded and sorted out this information in my mind, being sure to remind myself to tell the others later. Thinking of the others I looked down at Naru and noted that he was still unconscious._ What if he has some kind of head injury_, I asked myself, worry filling me up.

"He's alright," Koitsu said as if reading my mind, "Momoru only meant to knock him out not injure him."

I looked over at her and gave a small smile, "You certainly have surprised me with how much you know…"

She returned it and shrugged, "I try."

Something else popped up in my mind, "Hey Koitsu?"

She gave me a sign of acknowledgement.

"When you told Momoru earlier that his time was up; what does that mean to you guys," I asked.

Koitsu prepared for another explanation, "Well every spirit in this house is given a certain amount of energy and when that energy is used up, we fade away and can return once that energy has returned. Since Momoru has appeared so much, his energy comes in spurts and when he has used too much he has to disappear for a longer time. For me, I have never used my energy to appear before or anything so I have a lot stored up. If we don't heed the fading effect of our energy then we fade away entirely, effectively passing on if our business is finished or not."

It was an interesting new development. Even their energy was being controlled here, so that meant whatever was here, had a tight hold on Momoru and was powerful. "Koitsu," I whispered, "Just what are we dealing with here?"

In my peripherals I saw the woman's face fall, "I don't know Mai… I don't know." She sounded as helpless as I felt.

Naru shifted slightly in my arms, I had almost forgotten he was there. He seemed to be slowly regaining consciousness.

Koitsu noticed as well and offered me a smile, "I will take my leave now, I do not want him to be too shocked and fall back into unconsciousness." She stood and let out a sigh, "Mai, I must warn you before I go of two things."

I met her gaze; which was full of worry and protectiveness, "Momoru is somehow still growing stronger and he is targeting you. Since he has used so much energy he will not appear for awhile but that doesn't mean you are safe. Stay on your toes." She paused to let that sink in before continuing, "And another thing I have to warn you of is that my presence has been keeping your pains at bay so when I depart your pain from your injuries will return."

I nodded in understanding. "Be safe Koitsu," I said quietly.

Koitsu bent down and patted my head slightly, smiling warmly at me. "You too Mai, I consider you to be a younger sister to me, I would hate for anything to happen to you." She stood back up and backed away, fading as she did, "I will appear to you again should I find anything out… till then Mai."

As she faded completely I felt a pulsing in my head begin and a throbbing in my ankle. She was right, her aura had kept my pains away and now that she was gone they were returning with a vengeance. I let out a groan and let my forehead rest on the nearby bookshelf.

It occurred to me that it was extremely odd for the team not to have checked in on us by now, especially with the noise. They had to have gone somewhere or were doing something outside and were not noticing. I felt I might as well get comfortable while I waited for Naru to wake.

It took quite awhile but Naru awoke, giving me a curious look when he realized his head was on my shoulder.

I personally didn't care that my arms were woven around him or that our faces were so close together. All that mattered was that we were both alive and that he was not injured. That was a blessing in itself.

After awhile, Naru raised his head and looked around, confusion clear in his features. His gaze worked around the room and then landed on me.

I gave him a pained smile, my head aching and heavy.

"Are you alright," he asked me quietly, concern coming into his eyes.

I managed a shrug, "I'm okay, definitely been better…"

Naru's gaze darkened, "Did he hurt you?"

I shook my head lightly, "No… the pain is from the other injuries from last night or whenever." I gave him a questioning glare, "What about you? Your head has to hurt from hitting it."

He looked away and shrugged himself, "Nothing more than a minor headache."

I smiled, my eyes closing, "Good…" Though I would never admit it out loud, the fact that he was not hurt was more relieving than being told the sky wasn't on fire. I began seeing just how much he meant to me and sighed mentally. I couldn't deny it any longer; the signs were making themselves known to me. I was in love with my jerk of a boss.

It brought a warm smile to my face as I felt myself relaxing against the bookshelf, everything else falling away. It felt nice to be in love… now if only Naru would like me as much as I did him.

As I began drifting into sleep I almost thought I heard Gene say something.

I told myself I had imagined it but that didn't change the fact that I _thought_ I heard it; the one sentence that be the beginning of a new adventure for me of the emotional kind.

'_He does like you Mai… much more than you know…'_

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**There we are! See you on the next chapter! Thank you for reading! R&R if you want!**

**~Ghosties**


	8. Helplessness

**Thank you all for enjoying this story so much! I am amazed that people are reading it with such a flurry. Now without further ado, here is next chapter!**

**Ghost Hunt belongs to Fuyumi Ono.**

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_(Dream Sequence)_

_I blearily opened my eyes and looked around, seeing nothing but darkness. Sitting up I continued trying to peer through the darkness to see anything around me. "Gene," I called. Usually when I woke up into dreams I was in my dreamscape with Gene not in total darkness. I felt scared and like I was cornered but I couldn't see anything. "Hello," I tried._

_A ferocious growl emerged from the darkness, making the ground vibrate._

_I yelped and backed away, immediately terrified. "W-Who's there?"_

_This time there was a dark chuckle, "Are you frightened wench?"_

_I backed up more, trying not to let the fear show on my face. How dare he call me a wench! "N-No," I said as confidently as I could. Then I saw a huge form move and it was then I saw the faintly glowing red eyes._

_A toothy grin spread on the thing's face, "You are fooling no one with that stuttering of yours wench." It stalked around as if on four legs and there was a dragging sound behind it, it must've had a tail as well. Its eyes stayed on me the entire time it walked around._

_Feeling a little more relaxed I gave it a weak glare, "Just who are you to call me a wench, huh?"_

_It froze in its motions and growled at me, "Watch your tongue mortal. I can kill you should I wish to."_

_That shut me up; I tried to become as small as possible, not wanting to anger the thing any further._

"_But in order to cease your useless inquiries," the thing continued in a growling voice, "I am the great demon Zetsubo."_

_The way he said it made me shudder. He meant to be intimidating; in fact he loved to be intimidating; that much I was sure of. Then I began wondering something, "What do you want with me?" In my scared state I was terrified of the answer but since he had me here in this darkness I might as well know._

_Zetsubo gave me a hateful glare, "Do you think yourself so important mortal? You are nothing to me, I care not if your heart beats or not."_

_I gave him a slightly curious look, "Then why am I here…?" Apparently I was treading on thin ice because the demon just seemed to snap then._

_He leapt at me and pinned me to the ground with an enormous clawed hand. He let out a snarl, "SILENCE YOU DAMNED MORTAL!" He wrapped his claws around me lightly and brought up his foot slightly only to slam it back down, knocking my breath away. "Need I remind your idiotic mind that I, Zetsubo am in control at this time," he spat angrily._

_I coughed and shook my head, self preservation overtaking me._

_The demon smiled down at me evilly, "Yes, mortal, fear me. Let me feed on your despair…"_

_Suddenly I realized that he was in fact gaining energy from my emotions. It was like a drink to him._

_Zetsubo's red eyes seemed to be dancing with delight, "Your fear is almost as powerful as the other mortal's."_

_Fear flooded through me, as I realized just who he was talking about. I began struggling, anger ripping through me, "WHAT DID YOU DO TO HIM? WHERE IS HE?"_

_The demon chuckled darkly at my attempts to free myself. He lifted himself onto his hind legs, trapping my in his claws and looking over to a cage nearby, smirking the entire time. He lifted up his hand, laughing now. "See for yourself wench," he said rather proudly._

_My blood ran cold at the sight before me. I shook my head and struggled more, tears flooding my vision, "NO, GENE!"_

_Naru's twin lay in that cage. Blood surrounded his limp and chained up body, his skin a pale white. At that moment it didn't matter he had already died, no. All I saw was a suffering man caged and probably being tortured. He can still feel pain, I know he can… "G-Gene," I cried, knowing I was powerless._

_The demon cackled at my tears, "Your sorrow only makes my power grow you impudent mortal!" Zetsubo gave an evil smile as he threw me away from him._

_I felt consciousness tug on me but I tried to resist it. No… I have to help him!_

"_M-Mai…" a weak voice called._

_I froze; my grip on my dream world faltering. My eyes flew to the cage. I met Gene's sorrowful eyes and felt my tears increase._

"_Go Mai… d-don't worry about me," he said. A tiny smile worked onto his face as he held his bleeding side, "A dead person c-can't die twice remember…?" Gene slumped forward and gave a determined look, "Now… GO!"_

_Consciousness tore me away from the dream world. I reached out towards him; I was terrified of what may happen to him, "GENE!"_

_**-LineBreak-LineBreak-LineBreak-**_

I shot up, still screaming Gene's name, my terror still fresh. As my mind began processing things, I noticed my breathing was ragged and I was crying. Naru was there too, I realized moments later.

I looked over at him through my tears and launched into him, crying my heart out. I couldn't speak, the new development hard to grasp and frightening. As my crying continued, I began to hear Naru's deep voice murmuring words of comfort to me.

"N-Naru…" I cried brokenly, any fighting spirit I had had was gone. I had no idea on how we could help Gene, or how on earth we were going to stop Zetsubo. So many things were running through my mind and it was overwhelming.

After awhile, I felt Naru pull me away from him. I met his gaze after a moment and felt the tears continue.

"What's happened to Gene," he asked quietly but sharply, leaving no room for excuses.

An image of the man caged flashed in my mind and made me shudder.

"Mai?"

I calmed myself as much as I could and sighed pathetically, "Things just got a lot more complicated…" Before he could ask anything else, I put a finger to his lips, "Everyone needs to hear this." I removed my finger and watched as mixed emotions raced through his eyes. I felt his reluctance, I wanted to help Gene as fast as possible too but if everyone else knew, then we would make things go faster.

Finally he nodded and left to get everyone else.

I got up shakily and seated myself at the main chair, dragging a blanket over my shoulders. I kept thinking until the rest of the team came into the room. As they settled down, I felt the heaviness from all of their gazes on me. Getting this off my chest might help my stress and they needed to know what I had learned from my encounters with Koitsu and Zetsubo. I noted they were giving me whatever time I needed and I thanked them for that.

With a sigh I opened my eyes and felt determination rise up within me.

_Just wait for us Gene…_

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**The plot thickens! Things are getting intense indeed! Thank you for reading! Happy belated 4th of July haha. See ya next chapter!**

**~Ghosties**


	9. Confession

**Hello, sorry for the lateness of this chapter; power outages are still happening here. Sorry if it's meager or no to your liking, I did what I could. Naru is WAY OOC, just a warning.**

**Ghost Hunt belongs to Fuyumi Ono.**

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Silence encased the base, no one spoke. How could they after all I had revealed? No doubt they were trying to take it all in stride and yet trying to figure out a way to help. I looked up, trying to see anything in their faces. I couldn't make anything out, not even from Sozo. It was then I noticed something by the doorway.

It was Koitsu!

I tilted my head to let her know I saw her. She was making motions, pointing at me, then gesturing for me to come with her to the… she was fake eating. Oh the kitchen! I nodded and cleared my throat, "I'm going to go make some tea, does everybody want one?"

They all nodded.

I got up and closed the door to base and then ran to the kitchen to meet with Koitsu. When I got there I found her somehow grasping the tea kettle and filling it with water. I watched her in amazement. Her laugh broke my thoughts.

"I told you before remember," she said teasingly, "I haven't used my energy since I died so I have a lot saved up." She gently and silently set the kettle on the stove and then looked at me seriously. "I heard your account of what had happened, I am sorry," she said remorsefully.

I tried to push the images of Gene from my mind, "Do you know anything about Zetsubo?"

Koitsu sighed, "I wish I knew more but I do know that he is the demon of despair that feeds off of feelings of despair, helplessness, defeat or sadness in general. He gains energy from that."

I winced, "He made that… pretty clear to me."

I could feel her sympathy for me. "Another thing I know but don't know if it is true or not is that…" she rubbed the back of her head, "there was a rumor going around when my mother bought the house next-door that this land used to be used for satanic worships. I never did find out of it was true but if it is it certainly explains Zetsubo's presence."

I had to agree. So we knew some things about Zetsubo but not enough to be helpful.

The screaming tea kettle interrupted us.

I huffed and poured out the tea, making sure to be specific about Naru's. If I had learned anything about him over the past few years it was that if his tea wasn't done right he would not drink it.

Koitsu sighed and leaned against the fridge, resting her forehead on it. She looked so forlorn like that.

I stopped what I was doing and watched her, "Are you okay Koitsu?"

She shrugged, "It's just… I was thinking about how if Zetsubo hadn't had control of Momoru… we could have been together… married and with children but that demon had to come into the picture…"

I smiled sadly, "You really loved him, didn't you?"

She nodded, crossing her arms. Almost looking like she was trying to hold herself together.

I turned back to the tea and continued making it, "At least he knew of your feelings… That's more than I can say for Naru…"

Koitsu lifted her head in sudden curiosity, "The dark haired one? You like him?"

I smiled softly and watched the steaming cups of tea, not really seeing them, "I love him… I've just… never had the guts to tell him. I'm so afraid he's going to reject me or excuse it as something else. Plus he's out of my league… He's high and mighty Naru and I'm just little me. Even if I do love him, there is nothing I can do but watch from the sidelines. He probably doesn't like me anyways. I mean who could possibly love a lonely orphan girl who is so stupid that sh-"

A hand on my shoulder made me jump and stop. I turned, expecting to see Koitsu but when I looked I found blue eyes looking back at me. I gasped and backed away slightly, "N-Naru?"

His eyes were soft and yet troubled. He silenced anything else I might say with a finger to my lips. "Idiot," he murmured but not in an insulting tone but rather a caring one.

I could feel my cheeks enflame with a blush. I looked down and avoided his gaze. _Please tell me he didn't hear that… I would die if he did._

His finger fell from my lips. "Do you really think all of those things," he asked quietly.

My heart skipped a few beats, my head shot up to see him watching me carefully. I slowly nodded, having processed what he had asked. _Gods he heard it didn't he?_

Then something amazing happened, he reached forward and placed his hands on either of my cheeks gently and smiled at me. _Smiled_ at ME!

I froze and eyed him curiously, my blush still heating my face. He reminded me of Gene like that, calm, gentle and caring but yet this was unique to him.

"Idiot…" Naru said again, softer this time. Then without warning he leaned and captured my lips.

My eyes widened but slid shut soon after. Before I knew it I was leaning into it, wrapping my arms around his neck. Everything else faded away, Naru was the center of everything in that moment.

We broke apart, panting slightly.

"Wow…" I breathed, a little dizzy from our kiss.

He smirked and pushed our foreheads together, "I can't believe you thought I was too good for you when it was me who believed you too good for me."

I stared in shock; he thought _I_ was too good for _him_?

His gaze softened and he caught my lips again, this time ending faster. "I was afraid you'd turn down my love," he whispered, "I thought you might have liked Gene..."

This time I gaped like a fish; Naru had insecurities after all! I shook my head at him, pulling away slightly, "Now who's the idiot? I've loved you ever since you hired me… it just took a_ long_ time for me to admit it to myself."

He smiled again, "So it's official then."

I gave him a questioning look, "What is?"

Naru 'hmm'ed possessively, nuzzling my neck, "From this point on you're _my_ idiot."

I smiled, despite the nick-name, "I like the sound of that…" Something in my peripherals caught my attention. I looked without catching Naru's attention and saw a beaming Koitsu. I gave her a soft glare, shaking my fist at her slightly.

She gave an 'innocent' look and then winked at me, smile back in place. Then she faded away, leaving me and Naru alone.

Looking over to my left I noticed the tea still sitting there and cooling. "Oh," I said, "I forgot about the tea."

I didn't have to look to know Naru had rolled his eyes. I handed him his cup and started to head to the base. I stopped at the door however and turned my head around to look at him, "Naru…?"

He turned around and looked at me, one eyebrow quirked.

I smiled sweetly and said, "I love you."

The surprise on his face was priceless. It faded and happiness replaced it, "Love you too… idiot."

I stuck out my tongue and continued to the base, setting the tray on the table when I got there so they could grab their teas. I snatched the one green tea among the other cups and delivered it to Lin. Turning I headed back to the kitchen but on my way something caught my eye. There was a door open that revealed stairs heading downstairs. I stopped and approached it suspiciously, looking down into the dark depths.

I heard footsteps come from my right and knew who it was, "Naru? Was this door open before?"

He stopped behind me and said cautiously, "No…"

Looking at the wall beside the door I found the light switch and flicked it on. The stairway became illuminated in a yellow glow. I tilted my head curiously and then turned to Naru, "We need to go down there."

He looked at me, confusion shining clear in his eyes, "Why?"

I looked back down the stairs, a yearning to go down there growing, "I don't know…" It felt like I had lost something and needed to find it or that I there was something I needed to see, I couldn't explain it. I knew I was probably sounding crazy to Naru so I faced him again, "I have to go down there, something is telling me to go down there."

Naru stared at me, calculating mentally. He looked down the stairs too, and then said, "We'll go get the others and ask Sozo about things first."

I nodded reluctantly; as long as we went down there I would be satisfied. I needed to understand what this yearning was about. I looked back down the stairway, and let Naru tug me away towards the base.

I snapped out of whatever trance I had been in and looked up at Naru who was calling my name quietly. I met his eyes and saw the slight concern there.

"You okay," he asked quietly cradling my cheeks in his hands.

I smiled and nodded, bringing myself in for a hug. It still felt so surreal… Naru and I were a couple now. It made me giddy at the mere thought of it. It felt so natural to be held in his arms, surrounded by his comforting warmth.

I felt a soft kiss on the top of my head and giggled, pulling back to gaze at Naru. _I don't think I'll ever get over how handsome he is_, I thought dizzily.

He smirked and brought me in for a kiss, no doubt knowing it would spark a blush on my cheeks. He pulled back and his smirk grew.

I rolled my eyes and freed myself, heading into the base. But as I got to the door I reached back and squeezed his hand, "Let's not tell them yet, okay?" I knew he agreed, we weren't quite ready for that yet. The time would come soon enough, just not yet.

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**Thank you for reading! I'll try and have the next chapter up by this weekend! Sorry again for the delay!**

**~Ghosties**


	10. Flash of the Past

**ey all, another late chapter; I know. I apologize again, things have been busy for me this past week. I worked at the county fair and had a heck of a time getting in any writing between all of the power outages. Plus my main computer's hard drive got fried, so there goes all of my work. -_- Got to love these thunderstorms right? Yep... me too. Anyways, here I give to you chapter 10!**

**Ghost Hunt belongs to Fuyumi Ono.**

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I held my breath as I began the decent into the basement. None of us really wanted to go down there but we knew it was necessary. After all, it might give us some kind of answer to our remaining questions. I crept down as quietly as I could, hearing the others behind me doing the same. Sozo hadn't dared to venture down into the basement, so anything could be down here.

As I reached the bottom step, I felt an odd sense of calm overcome me. I allowed it to ease my frazzled nerves and I stepped into the room. Looking around, I noticed something odd. The basement was a small square room but yet it looked like the inside of a shrine. Looking behind me I saw similar expressions of mild confusion, "I thought they only kept the foundation of the old shrine, I didn't know they modeled it to look like the inside of the shrine too..."

Silence answered me, everyone else was just as stumped as I was. I ventured further into the room, making sure to be cautious. On one side there was an altar and a small statue with several burnt out candles. They had even put an altar down here? Now things were getting suspicious. I went over to it and brushed the layer of dust that had accumulated upon it. As I did, I felt a jolt of energy and I jumped away, holding my finger. What in the world...?

"Mai," someone asked in slight concern.

I shook my head and approached the statue again, brushing off their worry. There is something about this statue, I just know it. I felt drawn to it for a reason, call it my intuition but I just felt a pull from it. I tried touching it again and this time I held on, despite the energy coursing from it. _Come on_, I begged it, _show me something_. Then I saw it; flashes of things. I hastily my eyes shut and let it the images consume my vision.

_I opened my eyes and looked around the room, it had to be in the past. I could strongly smell the blooming cherry blossoms and the the freshness of late spring. Where the staircase was in the present was the main doorway, partly open, allowing sunshine to peek through. The inside looked absolutely stunning, candles and offerings lay spread throughout the floors and yet it was so clean. As I continued looking around, I realized that the atmosphere was sad, like something important was missing. The front door slammed open and two men walked in, I ran to the far wall and stayed out of their way. They were carrying a black bag and I found, in horror that it was a body bag. They went to the middle of the room and carefully lifted one of the panels, revealing a gap in the floorboards just big enough for a small person to get through. The smaller of the two men slipped through and did something that made the gap open wider. He stood upon something and helped his companion to remove the bag from the body. Terror ran through me as I recognized the face of the woman in a elegant blue and green kimono; it was Tatsu. They handled her without care and disappeared beneath the floorboards._

I gasped as the memory faded. I felt shaky but I didn't even know what they had done to her body, they could have just buried her down there like we had been told... Sometime inside me said they hadn't though. Focusing back on the present I saw Naru's concerned blue eyes looked at me. I blushed and looked away, feeling embarrassed.

"Mai, I'm not asking this time, what's wrong," he urged.

Figures he would be the one to know I thought sourly. "I saw something and it made me wonder about whether or not Tatsu's last wishes were evem granted..." I whispered. I could practically taste his confusion.

"Tatsu..." he said as if pondering, "Oh, you mean the priestess?"

I nodded and looked toward the panel that I knew lifted up. Not hestitating anymore I strode forward and began feeling for the little handle they had used. I couldn't hide me smile of accomplishment when I found it and lifted up the panel. I could hear the others gasp slightly around me and it made me feel even better about my find.

I tossed the panel aside and eyed the gap between the floorboards carefully. I knew I could fit through it and no one else could, except maybe Masako but I knew that wouldn't happen. Casting a sideways glance at Naru I quickly ducked through the opening, getting through before Naru could drag me back up. What I hadn't been prepared for was the small fall to the ground below.

I landed on my stomach, letting out a small groan as I sat up. It would be my luck that I landed on the rock. Another thing I had not been ready for was just how dark it was. I couldn't even see my hand in front of my face for crying out loud!

"Mai? Mai? MAI? Are you okay? Are you hurt?"

I sighed, same old overprotective Monk and Ayako... and Naru? I smiled lightly at the sound of Naru calling down to me, sure we were together now but I still had to get used to it. "Calm down," I called back, "I'm fine just a few bumps." I squinted into the darkness, trying to see but failing, "Can come one get me a flashlight or something? It's really dark down here."

"Sure, here's mine," Monk said, lowering it as far as he could.

I jumped to grab it and thanked him. Switching it on I did a quick look around myself. It was a dirt floor, definitely in the earth. I walked forward a few paces, swinging the light to and fro when I noticed something white, blue and green in the corner by a rock. I quickly flashed the light over there and froze in horror.

It was a body.

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**Nice ending, neh? It could have been better sure but I have to ensure your curiosity for the next chapter! Sorry again for the lateness, computers can be unreliable sometimes. **

**~Ghosties**


	11. Lost yet Found

**Hello again readers! I apologize again for the last chapter's shortness! If all goes well, this chapter will definitely be longer. Fingers crossed! So without any further ado I give you Chapter 11!**

**Ghost Hunt belongs to Fuyumi Ono.**

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There was a hollow and winding sound coming from somewhere around me but all that I could hear was like hearing it underwater. The body's long dead, cold gaze stared back at me with a haunted look. I couldn't think or feel or anything... All I could do was see and all I could see was this body. I felt frozen, I couldn't look away or move an inch, the dark abyss in those eyes was sucking me in and keeping me frozen in spot.

I nearly jumped out of my skin when a hand landed on my shoulder. I screeched and reeled around, trying to free myself from whatever it was.

"MAI CALM DOWN," a familar voice shouted at me.

I stopped and actually looked, panting and beginning to cry. I met Naru's worried blue eyes and broke down, falling into him pathetically. My brain registered nothing else except for his warmth and his deep, soothing voice. I had no idea how he had gotten down there but that didn't matter, I needed him.

I don't know how much time passed but it had to have been a notable amount of time because the next thing I knew I was being hefted up through the now disassembled floorboards. I let them pull me up, feeling numb and confused. I didn't care what happened after I was up, I just wanted Naru. Ayako was leading me away and I panicked, where was Naru? I had to have Naru.

I must've been mumbling his name because soon enough he was there, hushing and soothing me. I could practically feel his concern coming off of him in waves. I drank it up, my insides quivering as the image of that body flashed before me. I whimpered and huddled into Naru's chest. "Make it go away..." I begged him, "make me forget..."

He tensed slightly and hugged me closer to him, like he was trying to shield me from the world. I didn't stop him.

We stayed like that for a long time and I knew the others were probably burning with questions. Feeling that I had calmed enough I reluctantly pulled back a little and gave Naru a weak smile. He knew just as well as I did, that I wasn't over seeing what I did at all but we needed to talk with the team about multiple things so I could shove it aside for now.

He nodded as he caught my silent message to him. Clearing his throat he looked to Monk, still holding me to him but not as tightly. "What could you find out about the body," he asked.

Monk rubbed the back of his head, "Well Yasu said that he recognized the woman's face, it's the old priestess."

I shook the image away of her body away and voiced my question, "But that's not possible... is it? I mean she died, what? Two hundred years ago?"

Lin stepped in then, "That's the conclusion I came to as well, it is not physically possible for her body to not have decayed in that time. So we decided to get a little closer and that is when Takigawa noticed the energy field around her body."

Monk jumped back in, "Something is keeping her body from decaying, some kind of energy. I couldn't figure it out entirely but whatever it is, is way stronger than what I deal with. I mean I couldn't even touch her, there is a strong shield over her."

I didn't need to think to hard on it, the only strong thing we were dealing with was Zetsubo. Looking at everyone's faces, I knew that they had come to the same conclusion. But the question then was, what on Earth was the demon's reasoning behind it? Somehow I knew the answer would come with time.

Looking behind everyone, my eyes landed on the gaping hole in the floor. It was against my better judgement but I wiggled out of Naru's arms and headed back to it, feeling compelled to try again and face Tatsu again. "Naru," I called behind me, "I want to go back down, I feel like I have to."

I looked over my shoulder and met his eyes which were concerned. _That's happening too much recently_, I thought. He was reluctant to let me go back down which I understood entirely, my whole body was still shaking slightly from my first encounter. But some part of me was screaming at me to go back down there and face my fears. I pleaded with Naru with my eyes, begging him to let me go.

He ran a hand through his hair and finally nodded, "I'm going down there with you though."

I said nothing, I just went for the hole in the floorboards. I was determined to go back down there, no matter how scared I was. Breathing in deeply I began lowering myself back into the hole, holding onto Naru's arm to help me down. When I hit the bottom I noticed that Monk and Lin had put up some lights down there, illuminating the entire space. I froze again as my eyes met Tatsu's.

Naru's hand grabbed mine quickly, squeezing it comfortingly.

I squeezed back and let go, inching forward a little more until I was right in front of her. I kept my eyes on her as I lowered myself into a kneeling position. My senses were on high alert, I felt like something was going to happen. Before I even realized it, I was speaking to her body softly, "I'm sorry your last wishes were not fulfilled Tatsu... you deserved to have them carried out." Subconsciously I reached out and ran a hand over her kimono sleeve.

I went to say more when something happened that made anything I was going to say died on my lips as Tatsu's dark eyes met mine. I froze up as I processed what had happened, she had _looked_ at me! My hand shot to Naru's leg, "N-Naru..." It was at the moment I noticed his rigid posture, he had seen it too.

My eyes stayed on hers, I was honestly afraid of what might happen if I looked away. "Naru... why is she l-looking at me," I asked with a shaky voice. The shock was still heavy in my mind, a two hundred year old dead person was looking at me.

He lowered down to the ground beside me, grabbing my hand. It was clearly evident to me that he was just on edge as I was.

My senses were pleading with me to get out immediately but I stayed, feeling like there was something I needed to know. I was talking again before I could stop myself, "What is it? What do you need to tell me Tatsu?"

Tatsu's eyes pulled me in, deep and never ending; full of stories and experiences that had yet to be shared with the world. All at once I realized that she had died too early, there was so much she probably wanted to do yet but she had died.

Sorrow filled me to the brim and before I knew it I was crying. I fell into Naru for the second time that day and cried, feeling overwhelmed with this random flood of emotions. I found myself imagining all of the wonderful talks I could have had with this woman had we been in the same lifetime, it saddened me greatly that she could't tell me of the things she had seen in her life.

I made myself face Tatsu again and I found that her eyes were full of sympathy. It shouldn't be possible and yet here I was looking the undeniable truth in the face. She needed something to be said, that much I knew for sure. I wasn't as freaked out now as I was burning with curiosity, what does she need to say? As I was mulling over that question I hard a voice in my head.

_Look not at the differences in things but the similarities, there lies the answer to the riddle._

Everything was quiet after that, but I had to wonder what on Earth that meant. Don't look at the differences but the similarities? But in what? Naru's voice cut through my thinking.

"Mai, look," he said quietly.

I did and noted at once that Tatsu's eyes were closed. I mentally concluded sadly that they had probably closed for the last time. I placed my hand over her icy cold one and bowed slightly, showing my respect.

Naru touched my arm, getting my attention. "We need to get out of here, the police will be here eventually," he murmured.

I nodded and stood up with him, heading out of the area with him. When we got out, the others were nowhere to be found. I stopped Naru in his attempt to keep going and gently pulled him back. "Naru..." I whispered, "I'm sorry about crying so much and worrying you again. I should have waited for someone else and I'm sorry."

Before I could say more, he was cupping my cheek and gazing down at me, "It's alright Mai,, you were curious... Just promise me you won't do that again anytime soon."

I smiled and nodded, "I promise."

He returned the smile after a moment and kissed me.

I could not have asked for a better thing at that moment, it helped calm my frazzled nerves as well as my panicked mind. When we pulled apart we smiled at each other. It seemed like no matter what happened, a kiss from Naru could always lighten my day. This whole experience had been crazy so far, so it really brought relief to sit back and enjoy the calm moments.

Reluctantly we headed upstairs to find Lin and Monk speaking with two police officers. Naru let out a small sigh as he turned to me, "Why don't you go make tea? I feel like I'm going to need a lot of it."

I nodded and headed to the kitchen. When I reached the familiar room I was surprised with the sight of Koitsu hovering in the center of the room looking anxious. "Koitsu," I called.

She jumped and met my eyes, "Mai, thank goodness you're here!"

I immediately became concerned, "Why what's wrong?" I approached her quickly, knowing that whatever was going on had her spooked.

Her eyes jumped around the room frantically, like she was expecting a lion to come barreling towards her. "Mai, I don't have a lot of time," she began after a moment, "But you have to know that you finding Tatsu's body has stirred up Zetsubo a lot, he is very angry."

She was speaking so fast that I was kind of having a hard time keeping up, "Why is that such a big deal?"

Koitsu shuffled around and looked guilty.

"You know something," I pointed out.

She wrung her hands together nervously, "Yes I do. There is a reason I knew so much about Zetsubo, Mai. There is a reason that almost all of the people trapped here are here in the first place and there is a reason that I can't move on. There are so many things I need to tell you but I can't and I'm sorry." She met my eyes after a little reluctance, "You are smart, Mai. I can only pray to everything holy that you figure these things out. I know you can if you really take the time to think about everything you know and have learned." She grabbed my hands then, "Please Mai, put the pieces of the puzzle together, I know you can. The only thing I can tell you is that in order to even stand a chance against Zetsubo you will have to get him out of Momoru. It is possible and you and your team have to make it happen in order to help all of us spirits here move on."

I listened intently, not letting anything slip through the spaces in my mind. "Why can't you tell me Koitsu," I asked, "What is not letting you say the things you need to? I need your help!"

Koitsu cupped my cheeks and smiled wearily, "I wish I could tell you that too, little sister. You are a brilliant girl, I am confident that you will put the puzzle together. You should have all of the pieces by now, just figure it out." She looked at something I couldn't see and scowled, "I must go now, I will come back to you if I get the chance..." She patted my hands and kissed my forehead, "Please figure it all out Mai, I beg you." Having said that, she vanished.

I stood in silence, feeling a headache coming on. Why did all of the complicated things happen to me?

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**Wow, I'm even impressed at the length haha! Hope it is to your liking in length and content. R&R if you want, it helps me get motivated to write as well as where I will take the story. Hope you are liking this! Thank you for reading this chapter, see you in the next chapter!**

**~Ghosties**


	12. Masani Izeru

**Sorry this took so long! I have been a busy little bee for the past couple of weeks. Many events have happened, not all of them happy. School started, Junior year, yay! -_- Plus an unfortunate accident took away my best friend so I had a funk on writing for while. Anyways, hope you still are keeping track of this story. Hope you enjoy this chapter too.**

**Ghost Hunt belongs to Fuyumi Ono.**

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I walked into base and put down the tea I had made and then sat down, thinking about Koitsu and what that voice had said. I just didn't understand what either of them had meant.

Find the similarities? In what?! What was Koitsu not telling me and why wasn't she telling me?

All of these questions kept slipping into my mind and I was having trouble processing all of them. I rubbed my temples, my eyes shut tightly.

"You okay Mai," Monk's voice came from my left.

I nodded wearily, "Just thinking and trying to relax after all that has happened is all..." There was an unbelieveable pressure behind my eyes and goodness did it hurt. I must've let out some kind of noise because Ayako stood and came over to me, checking my temperature and such.

I lowered my hand, squinting from the light. It must be more than a mere headache. There was some kind of discussion going on around me but I couldn't follow it, my mind was hazed with questions, pain and frazzled senses in general.

"... just tell me when they find something out."

I could tell by the slightly stressed tone of the speaker, Naru, that I wasn't the only one unnerved by what we had found. Something finally occured to me in that respect, "What about Sozo, did anybody even tell her what we had found?"

"I did," Masako's soft voice sounded in reassurance. Although she sounded almost remorseful about having done so.

"Did she react badly," I asked quietly.

There was a thick silence before Masako spoke again, "Well considering the news I believe she took it as best she could. She wishes to leave the residence until we finish exorcising the spirits. I believe her to be packing both her and Moemi a bag so they can stay at a nearby hotel."

I felt a sudden urge to go to Sozo and try to calm her no doubt frazzled nerves but I realized that I of all people was in no condition to be doing so. I was probably just as jumpy about the whole situtation as it was. I decided I should voice it to the team, "Someone needs to go talk to her and reassure her."

No one said anything or even moved. I sighed and finally looked up at them a little angry at them for ignoring me but what I saw made me stop. No one was moving, not even breathing. I took in my surroundings more, feeling the distinct twinge of my sixth sense. It was if time had just stopped and frozen everybody in place.

I'd be lying to myself if I said I wasn't scared out of my mind. What other worldy energy had this kind of power? To stop time in its tracks and freeze all life in an instance of time. As I was looking around, I noticed a white figure to my left. I turned and could only stare.

A ghostly form stood there, a beautiful woman with worn and tired eyes. She couldn't be any older than Ayako or Madoka. She had long, dark hair and an older looking dress on. She stepped forward slightly, eyes apologetic, "I'm sorry if I scared you dear... but it was vital that I come and speak with you."

I remained silent. What could I say?

Her presence seemed motherly somehow, I knew she wasn't here to hurt me in any way. "W-Who are you..." I managed to ask meekly.

A kind smile appeared, "My name is Masani Izeru. And you are Mai Taniyama."

The name struck home, Masani... That was Momoru's mother's name! Then I processed the other part, wait how did she know me?

The smile stayed and she answered my unspoken question, "Koitsu has told me much about you young one, all of it good I assure you."

Anything I had been going to say died on my lips. So she and Koitsu had been in contact.

She looked around a little uneasily, "Might I ask something of you darling girl?"

I merely nodded, not trusting my voice quite yet.

Masani offered her hand, "Walk with me outside so we can speak?"

I wordlessly accepted the hand and was surprised when Masani kept a hold of it, cradling it to her like she might a baby.

She walked us through the wall, yes _through_, and took in a deep breath once we reached the extravagent garden out back that I was quite sure had not been there when we had arrived. A soft smile lit her face as we walked around the many plants and flowers, all frozen in time like the others had been inside. She led me to a small bench in the midst of the plants and pulled me down to sit beside her.

I looked around, awed at the beauty of the small piece of paradise. It was strange but out here I could just barely feel the unease and fear leave me. It was as if the peace in the air was working into me and calming me.

"You must have many questions," she said quietly.

I turned back to her and nodded, "Koitsu didn't exactly give me a lot of answers, she just raised a lot more questions."

Masani smiled again, nodding herself. "Koitsu told me that her departure had been swift," she paused, "but she also told me what to discuss with you so that you might be able to find an answer to Tatsu's whispered riddle."

I thought a moment and then connected the dots, so the voice I had heard had been Tatsu. Her words echoed in my mind.

_'Look not at the differences in things but the similarities, there lies the answer to the riddle.'_

I sighed and slumped slightly, "Next time I have to make it clear that I'm no good at riddles..."

Masani laughed lightly at my plight.

It was a musical sound that brought a smile to my face.

Silence took over the garden for a moment before Masani spoke again, "Mai have you ever heard the story of the Ancients?"

I shook my head, "Can't say I have.."

She nodded again and then carefully plucked a rose from a nearby rose bush. "The Ancients were once a prosperous group of persons, they were considered royalty in their time. There had been 8 of them; while their names have been lost through the years their great story has remained the same." She twirled the darling red flower in her fingers gently, "All of them were said to have been blessed with magical powers from the Gods and they held their gifts very close to their hearts. One day there came a warrior family from another land, some of them too had magical powers. The Ancients believed them to be lying until one day, the most fierce of the warrior family came forward, unleashing a fearsome power and injured all of the Ancients; sucking away their energy in the midst of it all."

I listened intently, knowing there had to be a secret meaning to her telling of this story.

Masani smiled when she noticed how intent I was on hearing the story, "The Ancients felt defeated, with the exception of one; the youngest one. This Ancient stood back up and faced the enemy with determination and unfaltering courage. Some of those in the warrior family felt guilty and assisted the Ancients to standing up again, healing their wounds and replenishing their energy. With words of encouragement, the turned warriors aided the Ancients of ridding of their bretheren; feeling ashamed at what they had been a part of. They swore to never again use their powers for evil doings."

She gazed at the rose in her hands, "Many say that the youngest Ancient should have died on that day but the one thing that had kept her life from seeping away had been the whisper and tenderness of Mother." Before I could even ask who Mother was she continued, "Mother was seen as the goddess that had created all and was in fact the mother of all that she had created. The Ancients felt a strong connection to Mother and many believe that that connection was what kept them going."

There was a long pause before she said anything more, "Don't you see Mai? Had it not been for the courage and determination of the youngest Ancient, the others probably couldn't have gone on. Nor would some of the warriors defected from their family to aid the Ancients."

That's when I realized what she was telling me. The 8 Ancients were symbolic of the SPR team, the youngest Ancient, well that was me. The warrior family must have been the Izerus' and the dark leader was Zetsubo. Then the defected family members must've been Koitsu, Masani, Mokimo and I supposed Daiichi. It clicked into place quicker than I had thought it might. I reminded myself of her last message, don't give up, no matter how helpless you may feel.

Masani gave me a knowing smile, no doubt feeling that I had figured it out. She stood and placed the rose in her seat, "Perhaps one person alone cannot cross the icy cold river, maybe that person needs many to help them cross that river. And together they will."

I found myself astounded by how philosophical she was. She had a way of taking any situation it seemed and make it a story or an instance in time.

Masani closed her eyes as if in thought, "Mai, do you know how it was that the Ancients were able to bring down the evil in the warrior family?"

I shook my head, "Not a clue."

"It had been the youngest Ancient that had seen it," she began again, "she had tended to keep just how intelligent she was in the ways of battle on the down-low but in that fight she had let it be shown to her fellow Ancients. That young Ancient had seen the subtle similarities in the evil warriors and that ended up being the reason behind their fall. The similarities had been in their energies. All of those in the warrior family been connected through the same type of energy and by creating a rift in that energy, the young Ancient was able to bring down her foes. Mother had given her the power to recognize this."

I felt like a dot had been connected but I had yet to see where or what it was. What was she talking about this time? I found myself feeling stumped. I had to figure out who Mother represented.

Masani seemed to become unsettled about something, I noticed her unease immediately.

"Is something wrong," I asked.

She didn't answer but instead pulled me back inside the study where the others were, still frozen in time. "My time passed all too quickly I fear," she mumbled. Facing me, she laid a hand on each of my shoulders, "Mai I did not get to explain everything to you so you must do the rest on your own. Think hard on all Koitsu and I have said to you and the answer will come to you, I have no doubts." She smiled softly and kissed my forehead the way my own mother used to, "You are a brilliant girl with a very bright mind. I know you can do this dear."

Masani offered one more sadder smile before vanishing into thin air. I blinked once and suddenly time started again, the others were speaking and moving again. Looking down I found a single red rose in my hands. I smiled and clutched it to my chest, "Thank you..."

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**Sorry that took so long, hope it was worth your wait.**


	13. Tatsu's Sudden Appearance

**Thank you for all of the positive feedback, it helps me write knowing that people actually like what I'm writing.**

**Ghost Hunt belongs to Fuyumi Ono.**

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I gazed out the window, deep in thought. So many things were on my mind and I was having some trouble sorting through it all, at least my anxiety was gone thanks to Masani. I smiled at the memory, of all of my encounters with spirits, the one I had experienced with her had been the most peaceful for me. I kept the rose by my side, not wanting to let is go.

The view from the window gave me a view of the backyard and I was shocked to find that the garden I had visited with Masani was just old twigs and dry soil now. I felt a twinge of sorrow at the thought, with no one to care for it as she did it fell into ruin, much like the shrine. Why did it have to happen to the greatest things?

A hand was suddenly upon my cheek, bringing me out of my reverie. I blinked and was met with Naru with a small frown on his face.

"You're crying..." was all he said.

I gasped lightly and felt my cheek myself and found it wet, it was then I was hit with the sensation of my watery eyes. I couldn't even speak, all I could do was cry. I gave him what I know must've been a pathetic look because the next thing I know I'm being enveloped into a warm but firm hug. It made me weep more, to know that this man loved me. Why was I being like this? This is ridiculous!

I could feel Naru moving around, like he was trying to position himself to carry something. I guessed right, the next thing I knew I was being lifted and carried somewhere; I didn't really care at that moment. I felt his walking pattern change to suggest a climb, we were going upstairs. He talked quietly to me, most of his words random and at any other time I might have laughed but it wasn't in me then.

We finally stopped and I felt the cushion of a bed on my back. I clutched for his hand in near desperation, not wanting him to leave me. I needed him.

"Shh, calm down, I'm not leaving.." his velvety voice came again.

I blinked rapidly, trying to actually see to no avail. He laid down beside me and cradled me to his chest. I needed the body heat, I was cold and feeling lost and alone. I breathed in his scent, trying to calm myself.

"It's ok to cry," he murmured, as if reading my thoughts, "you've been through quite the traumatic experience here... Having to see so many visions and having to deal with Momoru and Zetsubo... you need to let it out Mai."

I nodded lightly, trying not to bring anymore attention to myself. I felt weak and pathetic even though I had cried more than once in front of Naru. I still felt like I shouldn't because he was always strong but I was always weak. How did he always manage to keep a straight face? I'm not sure why but that just seemed to make my tears come faster.

That was when things began to change pretty rapidly.

I was choking and gasping for air I was crying so hard, I couldn't see anything through my tears. Why was I so upset? It was starting to scare me, why was I crying. I could feel Naru shifting, it must have made him so uncomfortable. He was never the best at consoling people, I was no exception.

"Hey, Mai..." he called, "why are you crying? What's wrong?"

I started crying more, "I D-DON'T KNOW W-WHY!" Something was wrong with me, I really didn't feel sad at all. There was no reason I should be crying yet there I was, sobbing like no tomorrow.

I felt the bed shift, only barely registering it. I was too caught up in myself to notice that Naru had left and rather quickly at that. I felt confused by everything. I had been given so many clues and hints at the answer to everything in this house but I couldn't figure it out, I was a failure.

The room was ice cold, I realized suddenly. The tears on my cheeks were freezing into ice. I wiped my eyes quickly, afraid of what may happen if I didn't. My vision was clear then. The room was glowing blue, ice all over the place. I shivered, holding the thick blankets around me tightly, I was scared now. Why was this happening? My emotions were jumping around like children on pogo sticks and it felt like I had no control over anything.

The room flashed and then there appeared an apparition, glowing the same blue as the room. As it formed more completely, I realized that it was Tatsu. She was dressed in her burial kimono, but she appeared younger than her body had. She seemed solemn.

"T-Tatsu..." I whispered, shivering again from the cold.

She said nothing but glided closer to me. Meeting my eyes she held up the flower that looked like the one Masani had given me in the garden. I reached for mine, panicking when I didn't find it. Then I realized that that was my flower. Ice formed around it in a shell of sorts, enclosing it completely. I could only watch.

Tatsu waved her hand in front of the flower and it was gone! I jumped slightly, feeling a sudden weight on my lap. Looking down I found the flower. It was encased in glass, not ice like I had thought.

_"If you shield that which is important to you, then it is protected and the worrying ceases,"_ her melodic voice echoed throughout the room.

I understood immediately, now that the rose was encased in glass I didn't have to worry about it wilting or dying. All I had to be careful of was not to drop it. Did that relate back to SPR? Could the rose signify the team? But then what made the sheild? She had just given me more questions rather than answers. "I just don't understand any of it Tatsu," I told her, my stress no doubt obvious to her, "I just don't understand what I'm supposed to find or what I'm even looking for!"

Her eyes softened and she smiled kindly at me, "Perhaps you have been searching for the answers in the incorrect manner, instead of having such direct thoughts on the question posed, search for the answer in a form that relates to this land and the people whom have established life here over the times. I believe that there you will find the answers that you seek."

Then a thought struck me, what if that was precisely what Koitsu had been trying to get me to do all along. She wanted me to search for the similarities in the people to find out something helpful.

Tatsu seemed to have read my thoughts as she smiled rather playfully and nodded slightly. Then she came closer to me and placed her hand on my head, "Until the time that I am needed again, I will remain with you."

I couldn't say anything before she disappeared... _inside of me_. I gasped slightly and sat still for a moment, I didn't feel different but I could tell that there was something there. It was then my senses decided to work correctly again and I became aware of the frantic calling of my name from the door by multiple people. The door was being banged on, that much I could tell and then it blew open and Monk and Naru stumbled in. Had they been trying to break the door down..?

I looked at them curiously. They stared at me, breathless and with slight fear. I quickly grew uncomfortable and snapped out, "What are you all looking at?"

They merely kept looking, and I finally realized that the entire bed was covered in snow and that around the bed was pure ice. I looked back at them in confusion myself. _Gene, I need you right about now..._

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**Good Lord! Sorry that took forever, for some reason it wouldn't let me save. Weird anyway, hope you haven't gone insane yet waiting for this update. I'll try to get the next one up quicker, school has been kicking my butt sideways so... yeah. Sorry if you found this chapter sporadic. I did too. Not sure why it's like that. Oh well. Hope you liked it!**

**R&R if you want! Knowing people want what is coming next makes me write faster. Makes the urgency higher... haha**

**G+G**


	14. Confrontation

**Since this took so long I made it longer than normal! I got a lot of positive feedback on the last chapter and that inspired me to write more. Thank you for that :) Anyway, let us keep going on this story since we are getting ever closer to the ending! Without further ado, here we go!**

**Ghost Hunt belongs to Fuyumi Ono.**

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I sat there in awe, my hand silently moving through the snow that had somehow formed upon the bed. I couldn't tell you how it got there but I could tell you that it was the purest snow I had ever seen. Perhaps the strangest thing was that the snow wasn't cold to the touch, it was merely there. I was so entranced by the snow that I didn't notice the group cautiously coming up to me. Well at least until Naru reached for me.

I met his worried gaze and slowly reached back at him, grasping his hand. Then with seemingly no effort he lifted me from the bed and into his arms. Everything else faded away as he cradled me to his chest protectively, how did this man have such an effect on me? As I stood there, huddled in his chest I suddenly realized.

The connections between all of the trapped souls. Tatsu, Koitsu, Masani and even Momoru had immense spiritual power that lay dormant within them. It was so clear to me now. I assumed that if the father of the family was trapped here too then that had to mean he too had some kind of spiritual energy. It didn't explain why Mokimo had not been trapped but it certainly explained all of the others. Then I thought of something else, Zetsubo was probably feeding off of their spiritual energies which would explain why he was so powerful.

I looked up at Naru to see his eyes looking down at me curiously.

"I know what to do Naru," I said quietly, "I know how to solve this mess."

I had never seen much emotion on his face but boy did that give him a surprise! His eyebrows furrowed and his gaze became questioning and dare I say hopeful. I smiled and pecked him on the cheek, in my own way thanking him for the help his presence had for me.

I don't quite know what it was that made it clear to me but I knew what must be done. I clenched my fist in determination. _Don't worry Gene, we're coming soon. _I didn't expect a response but I knew it was coming when I got one.

_'About time...' his weary voice sounded._

My heart clenched at the sound of his beloved voice. Sure, my love interest was Naru but I still looked at Gene as a brother to me and I loved him all the same._ Please, just hang in there a little longer, it will take us a little to get things together but I promise we're coming soon._ I only hoped he could still hear me.

_'...Roger t-that...' his voice was fading._

I knew he would be okay if he still had his sense of humor about him. He may not be able to die again but that didn't mean he couldn't get close to death. I looked up at Naru again and noted that his eyes now held determination, Gene must have said something to him as well. "We can do this, we just need to get to the Spirit Plane," I said after a moment.

He nodded and clutched my hand with his own. I saw some doubt in his eyes for a second but I jumped on it.

"Don't even think about trying to keep me here, I'm going. I'm a part of this too, y'know." I knew he couldn't argue with that.

I wasn't going to let him stop me. I saw his hesitation and I knew I had won. I kissed his cheek softly, showing my gratitude for him allowing me to do this, or so I hoped. He met my eyes and let out a puff of air.

"Just don't leave my side?"

I smiled and nodded.

_Your bond with him is strong, your love even stronger..._

I jumped mentally, but kept my calm physically if I freaked out now Naru would reconsider. I giggled slightly mentally at that thought, I was freaking out entirely inside but somehow I was keeping a strong image up. I focused then, trying to make a solid connection to Tatsu. _What makes you say that?_

I could practically feel her smile, _Your power surges with energy when you and him are near, plus your heart seems to flutter. It is quite evident to me. I'm may be quite the old spirit but I'm not oblivious to these things._

I blushed a brilliant red. Trying to hide it as Naru eyed me curiously. I shook my head in a silent answer to him.

Someone cleared their throat behind us making me jump. I huddled into Naru, his hand patting my back. I could _feel_ the smile he had. I peeked around noticed that everyone was smiling at us.

Monk leaned down and met my eyes, "Anything you two want to tell us?" His smile I took to mean that everyone already knew what we were going to say.

Naru chuckled so only I could hear, "Does it honestly come as a surprise to any of you that we're together?"

I could only blush in utter embarassment. I seemed to be doing that a lot lately...

_You are all just so amazing to me._ Tatsu murmured.

I asked her what she meant and she replied with:

_Even in the darkest of situations, you all manage to find a small spark of light to brighten everything. I feel that this will be what leads to your victory in this fight._

Her confidence in our ability astounded me and for the first time I realized that when our odd family bonded together, we could accomplish anything. Why it had taken me so long to realize that I'll never know but now I knew it.

I reluctantly pulled away from Naru and strided downstairs to the basement doorway. A faint shiver worked its way through me as I remembered seeing Tatsu's corpse. I had to shake the images from my mind and when the others seemed ready I lead the way into the old shrine. We were all on edge, you could feel the anticipation and nervousness in the air.

I turned to face them all, "The gateway to the world where Zetsubo roams as been here the entire time, beneath our noses. To save Gene and free all of the trapped spirits, we have to bring him down and cleanse the house." I paused to let them reflect on that, "I can't do this without everyone helping to the best of their abilities. There will no doubt be conflict. I know Zetsubo will not go down without a fight. I ask you all be prepared for the worst case scenario." With that I turned back around and focused on the next matter: getting into the spirit realm.

I had been the only one that had actually been in Zetsubo's world before, so I knew what it felt like, what I sensed it as. Tatsu guided me through the connection process and when I had it I shouted for everyone to get ready. I felt the final connection be made, a whoosh of air and then nothing.

There was absolutely nothing. No sound, no feeling; nothing. It was terrifying. I reluctantly opened my eyes to see a surreal landscape of black and dark gray that wound on forever.

I turned on my heel to make sure the others had made it, I let out a sigh of relief when I saw them. They were unconscious, but Tatsu assured me it was from the sudden connection to this world. I looked around wearily, expecting Zetsubo to just come from the shadows like he had done before.

I heard groaning behind me and I turned to see the others getting up holding their heads. I smiled tightly at them, "Welcome to the spirit realm of Zetsubo. I advise you to keep a sharp eye on the shadows because that demon could be anywhere." It wasn't a cheerful wake up call but rather a fair warning.

Something in the distant moved and I was alert immediately. I watched the area for any other movement but saw nothing. I mentally noted that there had been no sound and when Zetsubo moved you could hear his tail swishing on the ground.

I was confident in this assumption until I heard that dreaded chuckle that could sent a jolt of fear through the bravest man or woman ever.

Zetsubo chuckled again in the distance, his location indistinguishable.

I steadily worked backward toward my 'family', arms out at my sides protectively. "I know you're out there, just show yourself!" I yelled.

From the darkness lunged a claw that landed mere inches from me, making me freeze up. I heard the cries from the others but I was completely frozen to the spot. Then came a pressure of immense power that made my knees buckle, I gasped as I fell.

A clawed hand made itself known and faster than I could blink it had me in its grasp. I cried out in pain as it squeezed around me. I heard the others yelp and cry out as well and I knew Zetsubo had gotten us. I gasped when I came face to face with the glowing red eyes that haunted my dreams.

"Foolish wench, I was courteous enough to allow your escape and you come crawling back to me like some kind of lost slave." He smirked, "And now, mortal, you and your companions shall die by the Great Demon Zetsubo's hands!" He cackled manically and threw me to the ground. The others soon landed near me, their clothes ripped and torn, some wounds leaking blood. I pushed myself to my hands and knees and looked up, right into the demon's eyes.

The only thing I saw was bloodlust and utter insanity. He would kill me and not even think of it as wrong or bad.

One clawed hand lifted and a fire broke out on the palm.

I then happened to notice we were all on straw and I quickly realized his plan. He would burn us alive for a quick and easy death. My mind snapped into action. Since the others were unconscious, I would have to get us out of this.

Zetsubo's paw lowered and the outer edge of straw quickly erupted into flames. It was spreading too fast. My mind blanked out and I panicked.

As the fire drew closer I admitted defeat, even if I had come up with something it would not have taken action fast enough.

The fire was upon us now, I could feel the heat. It scorched one of my hands and I drew back in pain, scooting backwards to the others. The fire drew ever closer. This was it. This is how it ended.

But in the midst of that horrible moment, I managed one coherent thought:

Zetsubo had gotten stronger... much stronger.

* * *

**Holy crap that was long. So was the wait... sorry guys! Hope the length made up for the wait.**

**R&R if you want!**


	15. The End of Zetsubo

**Things are heating up! Anyone have any idea what the end will be? No? GOOD!**

**Me neither, I am writing this as I go. I do have ideas here and there but I just connect the dots until the end which I have honestly figured out... just not all the way. Glad I have the ability to keep you all guessing!**

**Ghost Hunt belongs to Fuyumi Ono.**

* * *

I looked away from fire, not wanting to watch it burn me. The heat was unbearable, the end was near. But then something changed, the heat started to die down and instead everything was getting cool again. I chanced it and turned my head to the sight of Tatsu's ghostly form standing in front of me with a hand out. I connected the dots instantly, she was putting the fire out!

Zetsubo roared ferociously in the distance, obviously angered that Tatsu was spoiling his plan.

I could only watch in awe as the fire shrunk and eventually disappeared around us.

Tatsu turned halfway to me and said, "Give me your hand Mai!"

I acted immediately but jumped when a huge swell of energy engulfed us. I didn't realize I had closed my eyes until I was opening then again to see the team laying neatly on the ground nearby. I peered around curiously, eyes squinting slightly in the sudden light, not seeing anyone or anything. I stood and turned around, getting my bearings.

"We're safe here, Zetsubo will not be able to reach us for some time," Tatsu's voice said behind me.

I turned to face her and noticed she appeared bothered by something, "Is something wrong?" I almost feared her answer, had she noticed something about Zetsubo that we had not? What about Gene?

She met my eyes carefully, "Zetsubo's world was draining my powers, I fear that I may become useless to you should we venture back to that world..."

That was surprising, "But I thought you had a lot of power..?"

Tatsu gave a small smile, "I do but when in the presence of a demon such as Zetsubo my powers are cut in half simply because of his powerful aura."

The others began to show signs of waking up and Tatsu acted immediately, disappearing into my body once more.

'Just be careful, I'm not sure how much I can protect you. I will do my best however.' Her voice floated about my consciousness like an echo.

I took the words to heart, Tatsu could only do so much before she reached her limit. Which meant that we had to rely on mostly our own powers. I found myself wishing I had more powers.

'If only you knew Mai...'

I felt a twinge of sorrow in her tone, what was she trying to say? I quickly shoved the thoughts aside once everyone began sitting up and looking around. "You all okay?"

They all merely nodded and kept gazing around, looking completely lost.

I looked down, feeling guilty for some odd reason, "We have to be very careful here, if you die here you die in the real world. Normally a person would not have to worry about safety as much but this is Zetsubo's world, he can do as he wishes. Pay attention to every sound and watch the shadows carefully. Zetsubo can trick you very easily."

To my surprise they all nodded again, actually taking what I said into stride. I couldn't help but smile a little at that fact.

A deep chuckle rumbled from all around us. I immediately snapped into a defensive stance, even though I knew I was practically powerless against him but I wasn't going down without a fight.

"Foolish mortals, venturing into a world where I can easily strike you all down," Zetsubo said mockingly.

I noticed that everyone else was like I was, tensed and ready to go at a moment's notice. They must have similar mindsets.

I finally started noticing a faint swishing sound, definitely the sound of Zetsubo's massive tail. I voiced my thoughts to the team, "He's closing in on us, keep your guards up." I strained my eyes, trying to see the form of the demon I knew was out there. When I turned on direction, however, instead of seeing Zetsubo I saw someone that I had been wanting to see for quite awhile. I let my guard drop as I ran over to him, "GENE!"

He was just as I had seen him before, chained up and slumped over. I reached him in no time, not paying attention to anything else. "Gene! Gene are you okay," I called to him.

His head lifted a little, I saw him open his eyes slightly, "M-Mai is that you?"

I held my hand to his cheek and smiled, "The one and only!"

Gene gave a weak smile himself, "Glad to see something familiar in this miserable gloom."

I cringed at how worn out he sounded and pulled out the chains that held him in place. I knew it was hopeless, these were spirit chains; which meant they could only be broken once whatever had put them there was defeated. A dark chuckle sounded behind me, I whipped around at the sound of it.

Those cursed red eyes that haunted my nightmares stared right back at me, an eerie grin plastered on its face.

I couldn't help but shudder at the hungry look in the demon's eyes. He wasn't out to play games anymore, he was out for blood.

I stood protectively in front of Gene and faced him seriously, "Let him go Zetsubo." My voice was more confident than I but I think he got my point.

Zetsubo grinned widely, "Is a mortal challenging me? How eventful this day may yet turn out to be..."

I looked behind the beast to my friends, no my family. They were all worried and scared but none so more as the dark haired narcissist I held so dear to my heart. His eyes held worry and urgency, he knew exactly what could happen if this weren't resolved quickly. I gave him a soft smile, and his emotions changed to curiosity and fear; he knew I was planning something.

My gaze hardened as it reached Zetsubo again, "I'll say it again, let him go." If Zetsubo were human, he'd know not to question what I was saying. My resolve was strong, I was not leaving this awful place until the demon was gone and Gene was safe.

Zetsubo's eyes gleamed with an unknown emotion, I suddenly felt very nervous, my resolve faltering slightly. That deadly smile worked onto his face and I know trouble was coming.

"I take your impudence to be a challenge toward me, your mistake wench!"

I could only watch in something akin to horror as Zetsubo raised one of his mighty clawed hands high into the air, getting ready to strike. Time seemed to slow as I looked over at Naru who looked utterly panicked. I held his gaze for a long while, mouthing the three words that I saved for him; I love you. He seemed to be in shock, I couldn't blame him.

Zetsubo's claws came downwards quickly, faster than I had thought.

I was only slightly aware to the fact that I was flying backwards, pain working through my body. The harsh landing brought me back to the present. I couldn't stop the cry of pain that escaped me, gods it hurt so bad. I couldn't focus on anything but the burning pain that raked down my body. I didn't know how close Zetsubo was until he was lifting me into the air and charging a blast of dark energy in his other clawed hand.

I couldn't focus, I was going to die. There was no way to escape it this time. I lifted my eyes to look at the demon who would be the end of me and resigned. I went limp and gave up.

Zetsubo cackled as his grip grew stronger, the energy blast swelling in his hand.

The last thing I saw was his attack coming toward me and then everything went black.

-POV-Switch-GeneralPOV-

Time stood still as soon as Zetsubo attacked Mai. No one spoke. No one moved. Her cry of pain was loud and brought them out of their silence. Monk erupted into chant, John began praying, Lin called for his shiki and the others helped where they could.

Naru stood there in utter silence, only able to look at Mai's injured body in shock and fury. His gaze shifted over to his brother and only more anger was added to him. He knew his grip on his PK was slowly slipping but he didn't care. This demon was going to pay.

Everyone grew louder as the demon before them lifted Mai high into the air and prepared to attack. Naru, on the other hand, only grew angrier.

As Zetsubo let out a cackle, he swung his attack to Mai and just as he was about to hit her with it something happened.

The dark area suddenly erupted into light, blinding everyone.

Naru lowered his hand when the light dimmed. Upon looking he had to squint however. The light was no longer the entire area but rather a condensed and strong area. A thought struck him, that was where Mai was! Worry rose up within him, what if she had been injured further?

The light continued to dim further until the light was shape of a person, but not just any person. It was Mai.

Naru gaped as he observed her.

Her brown hair had grown quite a bit longer, she looked more mature. She wore a long white dress that had various drapes coming off of it, long sleeves fell from her shoulders. Her eyes were closed, her face relaxed. Any previous injuries she had were completely gone.

Naru looked on in amazement, his brilliant mind not being able to figure out what was happening whatsoever.

"I-It's snowing," Ayako murmured, completely astounded.

Everyone noted this as well.

"This is what happened in the bedroom earlier, remember," Monk questioned, "it was just like this! It was clearly snow but it wasn't cold..."

"I have never heard of such a thing," John said quietly.

Masako shifted, lifting her kimono sleeve to her mouth, "It would seem that this relates to both Mai and the priestess, Tatsu."

"_You are correct, young medium_," came a voice.

Everyone turned to look back to where Mai had been. Zetsubo was now shielding himself from the light, his once victorious smirk now a pained sneer.

Mai had her eyes open but instead of the familiar chocolate brown eyes, her eyes were now a dark green color. She was giving them a small smile.

"Who are you," Naru asked, knowing that the girl he held dear was not the one he was seeing.

"_Physically I am Mai, however mentally it is I, Tatsu Omori_," 'Mai' answered. "_Mai was kind enough to let me take refuge alongside her spirit. It is also thanks to her that I speak to you now_."

"Damned priestess," Zetsubo growled.

Tatsu glared over at him, "_Yes Zetsubo, I snuck past your spiritual walls and you had no idea whatsoever, did you?_"

The demon merely snarled at her, backing away from the light she was projecting.

"When did you enter her," Monk asked, worry evident in his voice.

"_When you first witnessed the evidence of purification in the bedroom,_" she answered.

Lin thought for a moment before speaking, "You mean the snow with no temperature to it..."

She nodded in return.

Ayako gave a confused face, "So you're saying that 'snow' was the result of a purification you did? Interesting."

Tatsu gave everyone a curious look, "_Could it be that you truly do not know?_"

"Know what," Masako asked for the others.

The priestess looked thoughtful, a hand at her mouth. "_It would seem that no one does know_," she murmured eventually. She looked pointedly at each person before her, "_I honestly am quite disappointed with you all. That purification was not done by me but rather your youngest member Mai_."

Everyone stared at her.

"_Your young psychic has quite the energy reserve, it may even be to the point of rivaling your own PK energy Kazuya_," she continued softly. Steadily she had begun walking closer to them. "_Her power is so great and yet she has no knowledge of it, I feel as though in the coming months they will be begin to awaken themselves_," she gave Naru a small smile, "_being as it is that you have a very similar power to her own, I implore you to help her acknowledge them and control them Kazuya. Plus you are her partner, she will need emotional and mental support._"

Tatsu straightened then, eyes flashing with determination, "_Now then, if you'll excuse me I must rid of a problem..._"

"FOOLISH PRIESTESS YOU WILL NEVER DEFEAT ME," Zetsubo roared.

Her eyes became sharp, "_I beg to differ, when we fought before it was only you versus me but this time..._" She thrust her hand out to her side as if to summon something, "_This time it will be much different between us_." The ground glowed before a golden staff began to grow and finally reached Tatsu's outstretched hand. She fell into a fighting stance, the long white dress transforming into gold and white armor right before everyone's eyes.

Zetsubo let out a roar and he too entered a fighting stance, claws digging into the ground.

"_It's high time you release the poor spirits you have trapped here, including Kotomaru!_"

"Well then wench, why don't you just try to do something about freeing them?"

"_JUST WATCH ME DEMON!_"

With a mighty cry of her own, Tatsu leapt forward. The two clashed, sharp claws against sturdy staff. Sparks flew upon their meeting, the atmosphere getting heavy.

Tatsu shoved the mighty demon away after a short shoving match; both skidded backwards slightly.

Zetsubo began to circle the priestess, eyes holding fury.

The woman followed him carefully with her dark eyes, calculating his next move.

The dark demon tensed and ran forward, arm ready to swipe at the flea in his way.

Tatsu whipped her staff around and struck the demon on its cheek, pushing her pure energy to the tip of the staff.

Zetsubo roared in pain when the staff made contact, burning him instantly. He glared and quickly swung at the priestess again, this time catching her off guard and sending her flying backwards. Just then the stinging feeling that came with holy water hit him. He hissed and swung his tail out behind him and knew from the sound that he knocked something over.

Tatsu was up quickly and sprinting towards the towering demon, staff at the ready. Just before she reached him she formed a ball of pure energy and sent it barreling towards him. It struck with deadly accuracy, making the him evermore angry.

Zetsubo growled in anger and decided to try something different. Glancing to the side, he grabbed up one of the mortals and after giving them a tight squeeze sent them flying at the approaching priestess.

Tatsu dodged, mentally apologizing to the Monk as he landed harshly on the ground some distance behind her. She grasped her staff with both hands and flew high into the air. As she came back down she pointed her staff downwards and impaled the demon in between its shoulder blades. "_RELEASE YOUR HOST_," she yelled.

Zetsubo howled in pain, writhing on the ground. A flash of light erupted from him and where he had stood was a man that everyone recognized all to well; Momoru. The embodiment of darkness reappeared but this time in the form of a human with a cloak of evil overtop.

Momoru peered around, confusion written on his face, "W-What is... Where am I?"

"Momoru!" a voice called.

The man turned and spotted just who he had wanted to see, "Koitsu!"

The two ran to one another, embracing upon meeting.

The man quickly forgot his previous confusion and focused on the woman before him, relishing in her warm presence. "Forgive me Koitsu, I was not myself when I..." he trailed off, finding himself unable to finish.

Koitsu gazed up at him and cupped his cheek, "Momoru, I have already forgiven you, you need not worry about such things now."

Anything that was to be said further was forgotten when a loud roar and soon after crash rang throughout the air.

Everything stopped at the sight that met everyone's eyes.

The shadowy man was on his knees, Tatsu's staff sticking through his body.

Tatsu got close to the demon's face and hissed out, "_Be gone demon, you are no longer welcome here_."

Zetsubo let out one final roar as his dark energy faded into light. All that was left behind was a younger looking man who after slumping over, lifted his head to smile gently as the priestess, "Thank you..."

Tatsu gave a soft smile in return and nodded, "_Rest peacefully now, Kotomaru..._"

The man closed his eyes and then he too faded away.

The priestess let out a soft sigh before gripping her staff in two hands and willing it away. In a bright flash of light it was gone. She then turned to the others around her, taking in the slight injuries on some of them. She closed her eyes and relaxed, something that she had never thought possible had come to pass after all.

Zetsubo was gone and with him the terrible seal that kept her and other spirits trapped.

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**I am awful at writing exciting things, aren't I? Sorry you had to experience that... On the bright side this chapter was almost 3000 words. Also the next chapter is the final chapter. -gasp- WHAT THE FINAL CHAPTER?! Yes my dear friends, this story is finally coming to a close. Hope you're ready! If I'm lucky and motivated the last chapter should be up very soon.**

**R&R if you so wish.**


	16. The End Or Is It?

**And now my friends it is time for probably the saddest part of any story, the conclusion. Please enjoy this one last chapter to The Crazed Phantom!**

**Ghost Hunt belongs to Fuyumi Ono.**

* * *

Everything was silent in the spirit world. The evil had been vanquished, the shadow that had loomed over them all was gone.

Momoru and Koitsu clutched one another's hands, feeling a peculiar sense of freedom wash over them.

"W-what is this feeling," Koitsu managed after a moment.

Tatsu opened her eyes and smiled gently at the bewildered spirit, "_It's freedom. The seal that kept us here has been broken due to Zetsubo's defeat_."

Momoru's eyes widened, a feeling of cautious optimism came over him, "Then that means at least we can..."

"_Yes_," Tatsu murmured, "_at last we can all be at peace_."

Two more figures emerged from the fog that had settled around them all.

Momoru's eyes teared up slightly as he laid eyes upon two very familiar faces, "Mother, Father!"

Masani and Daiichi turned their heads and broke into to smiles, both rushing forward to embrace their son. "Oh Momoru, I thought we had lost you," Masani cried sorrowfully. Daiichi remained silent, merely relishing in the moment.

Meanwhile the SPR team was attempting to recuperate, Ayako being the one to access everyone's injuries. No one got away without a cut or bruise but some, like John and Monk were slightly more serious. The sudden attack suffered by Monk had done some damage. He had a long slice going down his back while he had a few cracked ribs from where the demon had squeezed him. John on the other hand had a sprained ankle, thanks to the swipe of Zetsubo's long tail.

"In all honesty," Ayako said as she looked over Masako, "we could have come out a lot worse than this, we were quite fortunate this time around."

"You're telling me..." a new voice muttered from behind them.

All eyes turned to see Naru's double.

Lin regarded the man's appearance with concern, "Will you be alright Eugene?"

The said man merely gave a weak smile and a thumbs up, "Give me a few days of rest and I'll be fine... That's one of the nice things about being dead, healing takes a lot less time!"

Naru regarded his brother in something akin to exasperation.

Gene noticed and made an attempt to look innocent, "Well, you always said I was usually dreadfully honest Noll!"

Naru shook his head and sighed, "Three years dead and yet you remain the same as when you were living, honestly I'm a little disappointed Gene."

The light hearted twin gave a laugh and then shrugged as he faded away, "Not everything changes in death silly."

Tatsu walked over to the group and raked her eyes over all of them, "_So... what's the damage?_"

"Not to bad honestly, I was anticipating something worse than what we got," Ayako said after a moment.

This seemed to relieve the spirit, "_Good_."

Naru gave the woman a slightly indignant look, "So when do you plan on releasing my girlfriend from possession?"

Tatsu gave a light laugh before shaking her head, "My apologies, I didn't realize you were so anxious to have your beloved back."

Naru's cheek's flushed but only slightly, he was clearly flustered by the comment.

Tatsu closed her eyes, a look of concentration coming onto her face, "Be ready to catch her," she murmured. With that, her spirit emerged from Mai's body and ended up standing beside her.

Mai's eyes reopened for a moment, long enough for everyone to see the familiar chocolate brown eyes and then they rolled back into her head as she fainted.

Naru readily caught her, holding her bridal style to his chest.

Tatsu stood with a smile, a peaceful aura radiating from her.

"So.. what happens now," Monk asked.

"Now," Koitsu said as her and the others came over, "now it is time for our spirits to finally be at rest. We have long awaited this moment."

"B-But you can't very well do that without saying goodbye first..." a distinct voice answered her.

All eyes turned to the girl in Naru's arms, "Mai!"

She gave a weak smile, her body still almost completely limp, showing them all just how worn out she was.

Koitsu returned the smile, "Of course."

Naru looked down at his girlfriend, meeting her eyes. With a reluctant nod he carefully lowered her to a standing position, keeping a hand on the small of her back to steady her. He knew at her current state she probably wouldn't be able to stand for long, but it might just be long enough.

Mai stumbled forward to embrace Koitsu, she sagged slightly, relaxing as she felt arms wrap around her.

"Thank you for everything," Koitsu whispered to her, her voice cracking with emotion, "thank you for listening and being so kind... But most of all thank you for helping us get our freedom."

Mai smiled tearfully, "And thank you for being my surrogate older sister."

The hug became tighter then but it was comforting and calming.

They pulled away hesitantly, neither one wanting to let go. They both had tears in their eyes, their bond had become so strong in such a short amount of time. Ultimately it was Koitsu that let go, her hand lingering on Mai's arm.

Masani came over next, her motherly aura comforting for Mai in this emotional moment, "I told you that you could do it darling!"

Mai gave a shy smile before hugging her too. She had never felt so connected to the spirits on a case. Their interactions had even been fewer than some cases but yet they had just connected so well, it was really astounding.

Tatsu seemed unsure as to whether she wanted a hug or not but Mai solved that problem by rushing forward and hugging her. The priestess was surprised but then smiled and hugged the girl back. "I'm glad that I got to meet such a young and intelligent psychic like yourself Mai," she told her truthfully, "it truly has been a privilege."

Mai nodded, "I can honestly say the same for you, Tatsu."

They shared one last smile before parting.

Naru resumed his position just behind Mai, hand returning to her back for support.

"How touching," exclaimed a new voice.

All eyes switched to a new face behind the group of spirits.

"Mokimo," Momoru exclaimed. His face grew pained before he embraced the smaller girl, "Forgive me Mokimo..."

The girl laughed and poked his forehead, "Dummy, I already did!" She looked to the others, "Aren't you all tired of being here already? I've been waiting forever for you guys to show up but you never did."

They all shared a light laugh, smiles littering everyone's faces. Not long after, all of them became slightly more transparent.

The SPR team looked on quietly.

"Be good Mai," Koitsu said playfully as they all continued to fade.

Mai gave a tearful smile, nodding, "I will as long as you promise to be at peace."

Koitsu spared a gentle look at the man beside her and then smiled in complete content, "No problem there, Mai darling."

They all gave smiles as their spirits finally faded away.

Naru pulled Mai into his arms, kissing the top of her head softly.

The ground below them seemed to fall away, leaving them all floating.

"Whoa, what's going on," Monk exclaimed.

"Our business in the spirit realm has ended," Masako said, her hand unconsciously intertwining with John's, "we're returning home."

The light grew brighter and brighter and then no one knew anymore.

-POV-Switch-Mai POV-

I shut my eyes as the light became blinding. I suddenly realized that Naru wasn't there anymore. I looked around in panic and noted that none of them were there.

"Mai," a voice spoke behind me I whipped around to see the faint figure of Tatsu standing before me, her gaze concerned.

"Tatsu," I breathed, "why are you still here?"

She put her hand on my shoulder, "To give you a warning."

That caught my attention.

"Mai... I..." she seemed to be having difficulty finding her words, "You... you must be very wary of the future. Do not be reckless or do crazy things. But most importantly; beware the coming storm." Her face was grim, "It is of the utmost importance that you heed my words, don't be afraid to tell your Kazuya of anything that may happen. You must be more confident in his ability to help you." She kissed my forehead gently, "Be safe Mai."

With that she disappeared right before my eyes and the bright world around me began to fade.

The next thing I knew I was opening my eyes to look up into worried sapphire blue eyes.

"She's awake," someone said with relief.

Similar murmurs of relief sounded from all around me.

I groaned in mild pain, rolling my head around, "W-What happened?"

"We were hoping you could tell us," Naru's smooth voiced sounded, laced with concern.

With his help I managed to sit up and by then finally noticed we were no longer in the basement but rather back at base. I shook my head, hoping to clear some of the dizziness. "What do you mean," I asked at length.

"We all woke up like 20 minutes ago Mai," Ayako said with her hands on her hips, "you remained practically comatose, we were getting worried..."

I looked down, feeling sheepish, "Sorry for making you worry." I suddenly remembered Tatsu's warning, "Oh that must have been why I woke up later."

The team looked at me expectantly.

"Tatsu gave me a warning about what is to come," I said, "she said to 'beware the coming storm'. She said not to do crazy or reckless things and to stay safe too."

Looking around at the team I knew they had taken the message to heart like I had. Whatever was coming had Tatsu worrying for our safety. I met Naru's eyes and reached for his hand. Our fingers automatically intertwined when they reached each other. Even though the future ahead of us was shadowed with uncertainty and possible danger I knew that our team would overcome it.

I spared a glance and smiled softly. With Naru and my adopted family at my side, nothing could stop me.

**-LineBreak-LineBreak-LineBreak-**

Somewhere in the deep and never-ending darkness however, something much more sinister was brewing.

"So Zetsubo... it seems you were brought down anyway," a dark voice rumbled, "you have proven useless to me once again."

"Forgive me father," Zetsubo murmured quietly.

"Silence," the first voice growled, "Skullshroud!"

"Yes father," a nearby voice purred.

"Show me your strength," the voice said, "destroy this meddlesome wench that foiled our plans. She must be eradicated or all of our planning will have been for naught!"

"Consider it done father," the voice replied, an evident smile in its voice.

"Good, it is time to enter phase two of the plan, prepare yourself Zetsubo; should you fail me again I will not be so forgiving."

All three occupants of the room stood.

"These mediocre games end now."

* * *

**Some foreshadowing for the next story! ;) I had to throw that in there, even if it was cheesy. I hope to see you all returning to the next story which will be titled Endless Nightmare. Keep an eye out for it, I might put up an author's notice as a final chapter to this story for awhile to direct you to it. Thank you all for reading this! I know I was awful about updates but I hope you enjoyed it all the same. Also thank you for all of the wonderful reviews, I personally read every single one and appreciate all of the kind words.**

**R&R if you so wish, tell me what you thought! See ya next time!**


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